Widow seeks action against usury mafia

TIRUPUR: Three members of a family, including an 87-year-old woman, on Monday threatened to commit suicide at the collectorate, if the district administration fails to recover their house from alleged usury mafia. Policemen at the collectorate recovered a pesticide bottle from the octogenarian.
“In order to pay loans taken due to loss in travel agency business, my husband P Jawahar Srinivasan pledged the house, which was in the name of his mother P Nallamani with an advocate in Dharapuram for Rs 15 lakh in 2009.The moneylender asked Jawahar to pay Rs 15,000 as interest per month,” said Jhansi, mother of a nine-year-old.
But, after a year, the moneylender allegedly doubled the interest rate. So, Jawahar refused to pay it and requested the former to give back the original documents of the property and also the deed. Though they were ready to pay the principal amount and the initial interest rate, the moneylender refused, said Jhansi.
“At one stage, the moneylender demanded Rs 75 lakh. We were not in the position to pay the money and lodged a complaint before the Dharapuram police. But no FIR was registered,” she said.
“We were being forced to vacate the house, which is the only property we have, and we faced torture from the moneylender in various forms. My husband, who was depressed, died of heartattack in last July,” Jhansi said.
“Now, the moneylender is demanding Rs 90 lakh. We have recorded a video of the conversation between us and the moneylender, it is the only evidence to prove that we were cheated by him. But, the police are not accepting it and refuse to conduct a proper inquiry,” she said.
The collector directed sub-collector Shravan Kumar to conduct an inquiry into the issue.