Franchise seekers in Mumbai duped of big cash in UP

Lucknow, Jan 16 (IANS) Unidentified miscreants have allegedly duped several persons of money in the name of providing them franchise of a company whose name they had used in their fake website.

The matter has been reported from Ghazipur area of Indira Nagar in Lucknow.

The fraud came to light when an advocate along with a team of Mumbai Police visited the company's office in Indira Nagar here recently.

Company director Vijay Sharma said that he was shocked to see the Mumbai Police and the advocate at his office.

He added that they told him that unidentified miscreants had sold the franchise of his company to some persons in Mumbai and he, too, was under scanner.

Sharma said that he fully cooperated with the Mumbai Police.

"Finally, when they did not find anything wrong here, I felt relieved," Sharma said and added that he told the police that he was not involved in the fraud but initially they did not listen to his pleas.

Sharma said that when the Mumbai Police did not share any information with him, he himself tried to unravel the mystery.

"I came to know that some persons had made fake website of my company and had sought applications from those who were interested in purchasing its franchise. They had also opened a fake account in a bank in Worli," he added.