Varanasi — The promise of easy profits often comes at the highest price. A school-owning couple in Varanasi, along with their family, learned this the hard way after being duped of more than ₹33 lakh in a share-trading scheme.
According to the complaint, fraudsters extracted a total of ₹33.35 lakh from Dr. Rakeebun Nisha, her husband Sabir Ali, and other family members. In the early months, the scammers returned small amounts of money to build trust, but soon stopped all repayments.
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The scheme began when Dr. Nisha’s acquaintance, Abida Khan, introduced herself as an employee of a reputed trading company, claiming its office was based in Singapore. With promises of quick and high returns, the family initially transferred ₹29.35 lakh online and later handed over another ₹4 lakh in cash.
It wasn’t long before the truth of the so-called investment plan emerged. Police have named Ajhar, also known as Anjum, a resident of Lucknow, along with others, as accused in the case. A fraud case has been registered at the Bhelupur police station.
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Cybercrime expert and former IPS officer Triveni Singh says such incidents are on the rise.
“People still want to believe that stock trading or crypto can double or triple money in no time. Criminals exploit this greed. Their method is to deliver small returns at first, build confidence, and then vanish,” Singh explained.
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Experts warn that after targeting major metros, fraud networks are now turning to smaller cities.
“In places like Varanasi, Prayagraj, and Gorakhpur, even educated people are falling prey. Offenders often rely on personal or social connections to gain trust, which delays victims from taking legal action,” Singh added.