Bengaluru: A promise of divine gold became a Rs 1.3-crore nightmare for a goldsmith, who fell prey to a man posing as an Ayurvedic practitioner. The accused reportedly claimed to possess 5kg of gold obtained through divine blessings and gradually won the victim’s trust. Convinced by the promise, the goldsmith sold family gold and land, and borrowed money before handing over the cash in instalments.K Selvaraja Achari from Chickpet first met 55-year-old Bhootam Lingayya around two and a half years ago at his brother-in-law’s house.Lingayya, who claimed to be an Ayurvedic physician from Bhadrachalam, Telangana, initially gained Selvaraja’s trust by providing medicines for asthma suffered by his niece. Later, Selvaraja, who was suffering from back and leg pain, informed Lingayya about it. He then gave medicines to him. Lingayya persuaded him to open a gold shop and make good money. Later, he told Selvaraja he had 5kg of gold obtained through the grace of the goddess and asked him to buy it to receive divine blessings and succeed in the business.To convince him, Lingayya brought a small gold coin as a sample about one and a half years ago and got it tested. He took the coin back after Selvaraja checked and confirmed that it was original.Selvaraja said Lingayya performed puja before a photograph of the goddess and made him swear that he won’t reveal the matter to anyone, including his wife or children. Fearing he would die if he disclosed it, Selvaraja kept the matter secret even from his wife.Over time, Lingayya extracted around Rs 1.3 crore from Selvaraja in multiple instalments by repeatedly promising to deliver the gold. Of this, around Rs 20 lakh was transferred through digital payment applications, RTGS and cash deposit machines to the number 8309578164, belonging to Pulluri Vishnuvardhan Rao, whom Lingayya introduced as his friend.Selvaraja stated he handed over Rs 1.1 crore in cash to Lingayya on various occasions. To raise the money, he sold 380 grams of gold belonging to himself and his family, sold a 1-acre-24-gunta dry land near Bagepalli in Chikkaballapura district for Rs 25 lakh, and also borrowed money from a few acquaintances.When Selvaraja later complained about mounting debts, pressure from creditors and financial problems, Lingayya claimed he had gone to his hometown in Telangana and assured him he would return with the promised gold in a few days.Lingayya was reportedly last seen on April 15. Months later, on Sept 1, Lingayya contacted Selvaraja from mobile number 9944685128, telling him not to panic as his father was critically ill and promising to return to Bengaluru with the gold shortly. After realising that Lingayya was cheating him, Selvaraja approached City Market police.
