Who is Amar Singh Chahal? Former IPS officer attempts suicide after being duped of Rs 8 crore in cyber fraud

Amar Singh Chahal, a former Indian Police Service (IPS) officer, attempted suicide on Monday. In a purported note, Chahal wrote that he had been duped of Rs 8.1 crore by cyber thugs posing as wealth management advisors. He was shifted to the hospital in critical condition, Patiala Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Varun Sharma said. Chahal was one of the accused in the 2015 police firing case related to anti-sacrilege protests in Faridkot district of Punjab.

In his 12-page-long note, addressed to Punjab's Director General of Police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav, Chahal alleged that fraudsters operated through WhatsApp and Telegram groups, and falsely claimed having links with reputed banks.

The thugs lured investors by promising unusually high returns through stock trading, IPO allotments, OTC trades, and so-called "quantitative funds." The former officer alleged that fake dashboards were created to show inflated profits. He further stated that the scam was highly organised and urged authorities to thoroughly investigate it.