Belagavi: A day after the arrest of film producer and director Anand Appugol, it came to light that he owed Rs 232 crore to customers of his Sangolli Rayanna Cooperative Society and granted loans to the tune of Rs 240 crore to them.
As chairman of society, Appugol had assured to return deposits of all the customers last month, but absconded when the deadline got over a few weeks ago.
After his arrest in Mumbai on Monday by Belagavi police, Appugol asked for some more time to return money to the depositors and said how he could arrange such a huge amount of money if he was jailed and cases were filed against him.
However the police, under pressure from customers, arrested and produced him at a local court, which remanded him to four day police custody.
During an audit of his society's accounts, the auditors came to know of huge loans sanctioned in the last two decades, most of which are yet to be repaid. Apart from Appugol, the police also filed cases against all directors of society and members of management.
Assistant Registrar of Cooperatives did visit the society to review its progress and check the accounts on many occasions in the past two months, but found the society closed.
The Assistant Registrar has stated in his report that the management and directors of society did not operate any branch effectively and were not even keeping a record of disbursement of loans to its customers and deposits made by them.
None of society's directors or officials provided information sought by the registrar and violated all rules and regulations laid down for cooperative societies, added registrar in the report.
Appugol has urged all customers of his society to grant him some more months’ time so that he would arrange to return all their deposits by mobilising funds from various sources.
The customers are in a dilemma whether to initiate legal action or allow him to arrange money from his sources. However Appugol's lawyers are expected to seek more time to arrange money when the case comes up for hearing soon after the end of his four-day police custody.
