Man usurps house for loan default, arrested

Trichy: A 40-year-old man was arrested for unlawfully seizing a house mortgaged by a 24-year-old individual who was unable to repay the loan borrowed at an exorbitant interest rate in Edamalaipattipudhur area of Trichy. Police stated on Monday that V Nithishkumar, an employee of a private company, resides with his parents in Edamalapattipudhur. He had borrowed Rs2 lakh from S David Sahayaraj, a resident of Crawford at an interest rate of 5% a few months back, for which he had mortgaged the house documents and blank cheques. He had repaid the interest and principal for three months, after which he was unable to continue the payments. Consequently, Sahayaraj informed Nithishkumar that he had increased the interest rate from 5% to 10% due to his failure to pay the dues, which Nithishkumar also obliged. After paying the higher interest for a few months, he was again unable to meet the payments. On Sept 20, Sahayaraj visited Nithishkumar's house and informed him that his debt, including interest, had accumulated to Rs21.2 lakh. He also insisted on immediate payment of the amount to clear the loan. When Nithishkumar confronted him, he left. However, on Sept 26, Sahayaraj entered Nithishkumar's house forcefully and coerced him to sign a document transferring the ownership of their house to his name.Police registered a case under the sections of the BNS and the Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Charging Exorbitant Interest Act, 2003.