Govt teacher in Arki extorted of Rs 6 lakh

A government school teacher from Arki sub-division has accused a woman of duping him of nearly Rs 6 lakh under the false pretext of undergoing cancer treatment — and later blackmailing him with threats of filing a false rape case.

According to the complaint filed by Ravinder Singh, a resident of Kandhar village in Arki, the incident began in February 2025 when an acquaintance, Shakuntala Devi, contacted him claiming she was suffering from cancer and desperately needed financial help for treatment. Moved by her plea, Ravinder initially transferred Rs 1,21,500 to her in multiple installments via Google Pay.

However, what started as a compassionate gesture quickly took a sinister turn. Ravinder stated that Shakuntala later began threatening him with false accusations and coerced him into transferring more money — this time to her daughter’s Google Pay account. Under pressure, he transferred an additional Rs 4,75,000, bringing the total amount to Rs 5,96,500.

The harassment did not stop there. According to Ravinder, Shakuntala continued calling him and began demanding yet another sum of Rs 5 lakh. She allegedly threatened to file a false rape case against him if he refused to comply.

Fearing further intimidation and legal complications, Ravinder finally approached the police. A case has been registered under Section 386 (extortion) of the Indian Penal Code at Police Station Baga. Confirming the development, Darlaghat DSP Sandeep Sharma said an investigation has been launched and all aspects of the case are being thoroughly examined. Authorities are working to trace the financial transactions and establish the sequence of events.