Hyderabad. A jewellery showroom owner in Chikkadpally, her husband and her father have been booked in connection with an alleged ₹9 crore fraud involving three jewellers in the city. The Central Crime Station (CCS) police registered a case based on a complaint by an Abids-based businessman and have begun investigating the alleged transactions under various provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
Complainant Avinash Kumar Agarwal approached the police on September 24, alleging that around ₹4.5 crore was outstanding from the showroom owner. According to Agarwal, he had been supplying gold jewellery to K. Srija, who operates the Chikkadpally showroom, since February this year. He said Srija and her husband Naveen initially made payments on time, but by August, payment for around 1,800 grams of gold jewellery remained pending.
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According to the complaint, during the last week of August, Srija requested a large consignment of gold jewellery for an exhibition in Visakhapatnam. She had reportedly cleared payment for 800 grams of jewellery before making the fresh request. Agarwal subsequently supplied another 2,252 grams of gold jewellery, allegedly worth around ₹3.5 crore. Following this supply, the total amount allegedly outstanding against Srija rose to around ₹4.5 crore.
Agarwal alleged that Naveen assured him that the outstanding amount would be cleared once their bank loan was processed. However, the promised payment allegedly never materialised. The complainant told police that further jewellery supplies were made on the assurance that the pending dues would be cleared.
The case involves alleged transactions with two other jewellers as well. According to the complaint, Srija and her family allegedly obtained jewellery worth around ₹3.44 crore from one city-based jeweller and jewellery worth around ₹1.2 crore from another, without making the claimed payments. The three alleged transactions together account for approximately ₹9 crore in outstanding dues, according to the complaint.
Police have registered a case against Srija, her husband Naveen and her father under Section 318(4) of the BNS for cheating, Section 316(2) for criminal breach of trust, Section 351(2) concerning criminal intimidation and Section 61(2) relating to criminal conspiracy. Section 3(5), concerning acts carried out with common intention, has also been invoked.
Based on the initial complaint, investigators are examining the alleged transactions and the complete payment trail. The probe is expected to establish how much jewellery was supplied by each jeweller, the dates and quantities involved, how much was paid against each transaction and what amount remained outstanding. Bank records and business documents may also be examined to verify the claims made by the parties.
Investigators will also examine what business assurances or documents were allegedly used to obtain large consignments of jewellery. The claim that jewellery was required for an exhibition in Visakhapatnam and the circumstances surrounding the subsequent non-payment will form part of the investigation.
In high-value jewellery transactions, invoices, records showing the weight and quantity of gold, payment entries, bank transfers and communications between the parties can become important evidence. Police are expected to examine such records to establish whether the allegations made in the complaint are supported by documentary and financial evidence.
The investigation may also determine whether the three alleged transactions were connected and whether there was any common arrangement behind the procurement of jewellery from different suppliers. The role of each person named in the complaint will be examined separately based on the available evidence.
At present, the case has been registered on the basis of the complaint and the allegations remain under investigation. The charges against Srija, her husband and her father have not been judicially established. The final position regarding the alleged ₹9 crore transactions and the outstanding amounts claimed by the three jewellers will depend on the evidence collected during the investigation and subsequent judicial proceedings.
About the author — Suvedita Nath is a science student with a growing interest in cybercrime and digital safety. She writes on online activity, cyber threats, and technology-driven risks. Her work focuses on clarity, accuracy, and public awareness.
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