Pune (Maharashtra) [India], June 4 (ANI): The CEO of a private IT firm operating from Pune's Hinjewadi IT hub was arrested on Wednesday in connection with an alleged job scam that left hundreds of interns and employees without salaries and jobs.

Hinjewadi Police, under the jurisdiction of Pimpri-Chinchwad Police Commissionerate, arrested Harshal Thakare on charges of cheating and criminal breach of trust following complaints from employees and interns.

'We have arrested the owner, Harshal Thakare, for cheating the employees in the name of providing jobs and collecting money from them,' senior Police Inspector Balaji Pandhare told ANI. He added that Thakare was produced before a local court and remanded to police custody till June 8.

Pandhare further said, 'While we have arrested the company's CEO, Harshal Thakare, a search is on for the other accused who have been identified, and the probe is underway to ascertain whether more people were involved in the case.'

According to police, the case was registered based on a complaint filed by a 25-year-old intern. The FIR names Thakare, the company's Head of Training and Development, and an HR manager, FIR registered under BNS section Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) sections 316 (2) (criminal breach of trust), 318 (4) (cheating) and 3 (5) (common intention).

Police said that over 30 interns and employees have so far approached investigators, with more complainants expected to come forward. The company operated from its divisional office in Hinjewadi Phase II, while its registered head office is located in Noida.

Complainant alleged that the IT firm collected Rs 15,000 from recruits in the name of providing laptops and allegedly failed to pay stipends and salaries promised to employees. Several complainants have alleged that they have not received salaries for one to three months.

Meanwhile, Forum for IT Employees (FITE) claimed that the issue surfaced after multiple employees approached the organisation seeking assistance.

'We had approached Hinjewadi Police to file an FIR against the owners of the firm after several interns complained to us,' FITE chief Pavanjit Mane told ANI.

Mane alleged that salary payments stopped months ago despite repeated assurances from the management.

'The company started operations last year and initially paid salaries to freshers. However, from January onwards, employees were not paid. The owners kept giving new dates for salary payments whenever employees approached them, but they never fulfilled those promises,' he said.

Mane further claimed that the scale of the alleged fraud could be larger than initially estimated, alleging that deposits were collected from hundreds of interns and freshers while salary dues continued to accumulate.

Police said further investigation is underway to determine the total number of victims, trace financial transactions and identify any additional accused involved in the case. (ANI)