Pune, 30th June 2026: A 47-year-old cloth merchant from Pune's Uttamnagar has allegedly received a death threat and a demand for ₹2 crore from a caller claiming to be associated with the Bishnoi gang.
An FIR has been registered at Uttamnagar Police Station, and the Pune Crime Branch has begun an investigation. The incident is the latest in a series of extortion threats targeting businessmen across Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad.
According to the police, the complainant runs a cloth shop in Uttamnagar and is also involved in the construction business. On Saturday morning, he received an internet call from a man who introduced himself as Shubham Lonkar.
During the conversation, the caller allegedly revealed detailed information about the merchant's business, vehicle registration number, daily routine, family members, and his role as an office-bearer of the Uttamnagar-Shivane Merchants' Association.
The caller allegedly threatened to kill the businessman and demanded ₹2 crore, instructing him to keep the money ready while saying that further instructions would be given later. The merchant immediately approached Uttamnagar police and lodged a complaint.
As a precaution, police have increased security at the complainant's residence, cloth shop, and construction office in Narhe. Senior Police Inspector Raghavendra Kshirsagar said the Crime Branch is carrying out a detailed investigation to identify the caller and trace the source of the internet-based call.
The latest complaint comes amid a spate of extortion threats made in the name of the Bishnoi gang. On June 22, a steel industrialist from Wanowrie allegedly received a ₹50 crore extortion demand, and unidentified persons later opened fire outside his factory in Mantarwadi.
On June 23, a wholesale pharmaceutical trader from Wadki also reported receiving a demand for ₹2 crore.
In another similar case reported last week, a woman from Ravet approached Pimpri-Chinchwad police after her husband, who is based in Dubai, allegedly received a ₹5 crore extortion demand from callers claiming to be members of the Bishnoi gang.
With four such incidents reported within a week across Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad, police have intensified efforts to trace those allegedly using the Bishnoi gang's name to extort money. The repeated threats have also raised concerns among the region's business community over a growing pattern of organised extortion attempts.
