Resellers to approach court for verdict in Divya case

A group of resellers from the local IT market are planning to move court next week to settle a dispute with a fellow reseller. According to the resellers, Divya Enterprises, managed by Madhavan and Vasumathi, had recently closed shop unannounced, cheating them to the tune of over Rs 15 lakh. Immediately, the group had approached the police to take necessary action.

However, as there was no proper response, the resellers are moving court to seek justice in this matter. 

Meanwhile, Vasumathi, the only person from Divya Enterprises available now, had issued a notice to the resellers through her lawyer that she is not part of the company anymore and that she was just an employee of the company. She has also asked the resellers not to contact her for any outstanding payments. Madhavan is absconding and it is understood that he has gone to his native town -

Thanjavur.

Some of the resellers who had supplied products to Divya Enterprises and holding necessary proof are Metro Computers, Kankaria Computer Links, S3 Computers, Orson Automation, Comptech Electronics, Nandhini Computer Peripherals, Perfect Engineers and Esteem Technologies.

However, resellers are accusing Vasumathi of being associated with issue. The resellers say that they have transacted only with Vasumathi, while Madhavan was just managing the business from the back-end. According to the sources, Madhavan and Vasumathi were managing two other businesses (accounts) in the name of VM Computers and Computer World. And they are believed to be partners in business. "If Vasumathi was just an employee, why should she issue cheques for payment from her personal account," asks a leading reseller.

When contacted, Vasumathi justified her stand and said that she was being made a scapegoat. "I am innocent. Yes, I was working for Divya Enterprises as a marketing executive but I have doing so from the very onset of the company. And as my seniority at the company increased, I was entrusted with more responsibilities, as a result of which my interaction with the resellers in the market increased. But I have never been a partner in Divya Enterprises. There is not record to prove that. And if this fact should be contested, I'm ready to face the challenge legally."

Divya Enterprises has a long history: the company was founded and managed by one Sashidhar, who is believed to have sold the business to Madhavan and Vasumathi before going abroad, a couple of years ago. Later, the duo approached the market seeking some credit limit with the suppliers. "We believed them to be genuine and in fact, they met their commitments for sometime before cheating us with a big sum of money," said a reseller who is bringing own products in the market.

"The market is turning worse everyday with so many fly-by-night operators. We really do not know whom we should trust and with whom we should transact. Business has become a nightmare these days," says Vikash Chandra, Managing Director, Comptech Electronics Pvt Ltd. "Initially, their payments were honored on time and they slowly increased the credit limit gaining confidence from us. During the last few months, their cheques were dishonored several times and Vasumathi promised to settle the issue soon. However, on the said date, they closed down the shutters, leaving us in lurch."

"There should be a perfect law to put people who issue cheques that bounce, behind the bars. Unless and until the laws are strict, the fraudulent like them will continue doing these kind of acts," said another key reseller in the market.

S Gopikrishna