Siddipet: Private moneylenders found charging 60 per cent interest

During the daylong raids, the police seized Rs.1.21 crore of unaccounted cash, 700 grams of gold ornaments, 13 kg of silver ornaments and 490 land documents.

Siddipet: The Siddipet Police, who on Saturday raided residences of moneylenders in the district to check illegal deals, found that some lenders were charging interest rates as high as 60 per cent as against the normal charges of 15 per cent.

While some borrowers pledged gold and silver ornaments as surety for loans, others registered agriculture lands and plots on the lender’s name to borrow money.

---

Siddipet Commissioner of Police Dr B Anuradha constituted 24 special teams across the district to carry out the raids simultaneously.

The police had kept a watch on the money lenders for 10 days to get the exact information under each police station before carrying out the raids on Saturday.

During the daylong raids, the police seized Rs.1.21 crore of unaccounted cash, 700 grams of gold ornaments, 13 kg of silver ornaments and 490 land documents.

The police also registered 38 cases of illegal financial operations. The Commissioner said some families were being pushed into financial distress as they were getting the money at a high interest rate which they could not clear.

Stern action would be initiated against illegal lenders giving loans at high interest rates violating RBI norms and the Telangana Money Lenders Act, she said, asking victims to call the police over 100 or on the Commissioner’s office WhatsApp number 87126 67100 to lodge complaints.

The police were also focusing on daily financiers who lend money without any proof to daily vendors. These daily financiers allegedly charge interest rates as high as 120 per cent. EOM