Kanpur, July 31 -- In an incident that raises questions over coercive loan recovery practices, a Jhansi man has accused a private microfinance company of illegally detaining his wife over his alleged loan defaults. The woman was released only after police intervention nearly four hours later. The complainant, Ravindra Verma, a resident of Poonch area in Jhansi, has submitted a written complaint at the Moth police station. He alleged that the employees of a private group-based lending institution, located in Azad Nagar of Bamharoli village, allegedly held his wife hostage inside their office premises after he failed to pay the remaining instalments of a small personal loan.According to Verma, he had taken a loan of Rs 40,000 from the microfinance group, with a monthly repayment of Rs 2,120. He said he had paid 11 instalments, but the firm was showing only eight as deposited. "I handed the payments to agents named Kaushal and Dharmendra, but it seems they misappropriated the amount. When I stopped paying further until the matter was clarified, they called me and my wife to their office," Verma alleged.The incident took place on Monday around 1 pm when Verma and his wife, Pooja Verma, visited the bank's office. "They did not allow my wife to leave, and insisted I arrange the remaining payment if I wanted to take her back. Despite my pleas and explanation of financial difficulty, they refused to release her," he said.After repeated requests went unheard, Verma contacted the police control room and dialled 112. A police response vehicle arrived at the location, and after nearly four hours, the woman was released and taken to Moth police station along with her husband. A formal complaint has been lodged against the staff involved.Jhansi SSP BBTGS Murthy confirmed that a complaint had been received and said that the matter was under investigation. "We are reviewing CCTV footage from the premises and verifying all claims. Appropriate action will be taken based on the evidence collected," he said.htc...