Ahmedabad Businessman Alleges ₹2.76 Lakh Fraud Over China Trade Fair Tour Package

A 48-year-old businessman has lodged a complaint against the owner of a city-based travel company, alleging that he and his brother-in-law paid ₹2.76 lakh for a package to attend the Canton Fair in China, but the promised travel arrangements and visas were not processed. A refund cheque issued by the company was also allegedly dishonoured twice due to insufficient funds.

The complaint was filed on September 18 at Anandnagar police station by Jatin Mansukhlal Dutt, who runs a plastic-granules trading business under the name Manthan Plastic. He has accused Darshan Ashwinbhai Bhatt, owner of Diya World Wide Pvt Ltd, of accepting the payment for arranging the China trip and subsequently failing to provide the promised services or refund the money.

Businessman Planned China Trip For Canton Fair

According to the complaint, Jatin planned to travel to China in April 2026 to attend the Canton Fair for business purposes.

In January, he approached his relative Smit Rajeshbhai Kariya for information about a suitable tour package. Kariya allegedly introduced him to the office of Diya World Wide Pvt Ltd at Sun South Street in South Bopal, where Jatin met Bhatt.

The complainant alleged that Bhatt offered a package costing ₹78,000 per person, along with an additional ₹20,000 for a two-day extended stay and ₹38,768 towards airfare. Including ₹2,500 for invitation letter charges, the total cost for Jatin and his brother-in-law Jay Vinodkumar Tanna came to ₹2.76 lakh.

₹2.76 Lakh Paid Through Bank Transfers

Jatin alleged that the payments were transferred to bank accounts of Diya World Wide Pvt Ltd.

The transactions included ₹1.03 lakh on January 21, ₹64,000 on January 24 and ₹20,000 on February 7. He later transferred the remaining amount on April 8, taking the total payment to ₹2.76 lakh.

The complainant said the necessary documents for both travellers were handed over to Bhatt on February 17.

According to the complaint, Bhatt subsequently informed the two through WhatsApp that the visa process had been initiated and that their visas would be received by April 22.

Visas Allegedly Not Processed

The complainant alleged that the visas did not arrive by the promised date.

He claimed that repeated enquiries were met with assurances that the process was underway. Bhatt allegedly told him that the entire package amount would be refunded if the visas were not received by April 22.

Even after the deadline passed, however, the proposed trip allegedly did not materialise. Jatin subsequently sought a refund and said he was repeatedly assured that the money would be returned.

Refund Cheque Bounced Twice

On May 30, Bhatt allegedly issued an SBI cheque for ₹1.66 lakh towards the refund. The complainant said another cheque was also provided for the remaining amount.

The ₹1.66-lakh cheque was deposited on June 1 but was returned unpaid on June 3 with the remark “funds insufficient”.

Jatin said he informed Bhatt about the bounced cheque, following which he was allegedly asked to deposit it again on July 1.

The cheque allegedly bounced for the second time due to insufficient funds.

The complainant said he subsequently made repeated attempts to contact Bhatt, but alleged that the latter stopped responding to his calls. When he visited the company's office, he allegedly found it closed and could not recover the money.

Anandnagar Police Begin Investigation

The complainant has alleged that Bhatt accepted the advance payment for arranging the China trip but failed to process the promised travel arrangements and subsequently issued a refund cheque that was dishonoured.

Anandnagar Police have registered a case and begun an investigation.

Investigators are expected to examine the bank transactions, WhatsApp communications, documents submitted for the proposed trip, terms of the tour package and the cheques issued to the complainant. Police will also verify the status and operations of the travel company.