Freedom 251 phone makers summoned in cheque bounce case

The makers of Freedom 251, claimed to be the world’s cheapest smartphone, have been summoned by a Delhi court in a Rs 2-crore cheque bounce case filed by a private firm.

The court summoned the accused — Ringing Bells Pvt Ltd (RBPL), its authorised signatory and Managing Director Mohit Goel, its Directors Anmol Goel and Sumit Goel, CEO Dhaarna Goel and President Ashok Chaddha — on a complaint filed by Aryan Infratech.

In its order, Metropolitan Magistrate Snigdha Sarvaria noted that even after the legal notice was sent to the accused when the cheque got dishonoured, they failed to pay the amount. PTI

According to the complaint, the accused had issued a cheque in favour of the complainant firm AIPL towards discharge of their liability. However, it was returned by the bank on October 28 due to "insufficient funds". The complainant firm sent a legal notice to the accused but payment was not made and AIPL approached the court.

A little-known company RBPL began selling the handset, Freedom 251, via its website in February. But the launch of the smartphone, touted to be the worlds cheapest, landed in a controversy, with some alleging it to be a ponzy scheme. The firm had claimed that around 30,000 customers had booked the phone despite the glitch and seven crore people registered for it.