Rajkot: A Bhavnagar-based businessman operating a solar rooftop business was allegedly duped of Rs 19.35 lakh by online fraudsters posing as representatives of a Mumbai-based firm promising solar panels at discounted rates.The complainant, Bhagirat Dhandhlya (35), proprietor of Global Enterprise in Bhavnagar, filed a complaint with Cyber Crime police station.According to the FIR, Dhandhlya spotted an Instagram Reel advertisement by a firm named Sunroute Energy Solutions offering DCR TOPCON Solar PV Modules on Sept 1. Since the modules were reportedly scarce in Gujarat, Dhandhlya contacted the mobile number listed in the advertisement on Sept 4 via WhatsApp.The person on the other end identified himself as Aman Singh and shared a quotation for solar panels totalling Rs 49.60 lakh, demanding a 40% advance booking payment with a commitment to deliver the consignment within 15 days.To convince Dhandhlya, Singh directed him to a purported previous client in Surat. This client spoke with Dhandhlya in Gujarati and assured him that the firm was genuine and reliable.Convinced by the endorsement, Dhandhlya transferred Rs 19.35 lakh via bank transfer to the account of the selling firm. While the firm initially sent an invoice, the promised consignment never arrived.The fraud came to light on Sept 14, when Dhandhlya saw warnings in a WhatsApp group of solar rooftop dealers. The messages, alongside a newspaper clipping from a Hindi daily, reported that Sunroute Energy Solutions had collected advance payments from multiple dealers across the region without dispatching any equipment.When repeated calls to Singh went unanswered, Dhandhlya contacted other dealers across Gujarat, including representatives from Rajkot and Deesa, who confirmed that they too had paid advances weeks earlier without receiving shipments, and that the company’s Malad office in Mumbai was not granting entry to visitors.Dhandhlya initially lodged a complaint on National Cybercrime helpline (1930) before submitting a formal written report.
