multiply although this team of vigilantes were able to draw attention to the scam and drive collectors away the coins are back in circulation again rues khanna a quick internet search reveals travancore coins on sale for rs 20000 and rs 1 lakhthere are several instances of such audacious con jobs in 2015 a jalpaiguri resident was ready to dish out rs 13 lakh for a fake rice puller coin minted by the east india company for its seemingly magical properties before the dealer was arrested in 2016 three bags of sholay coins a one rupee coin with two obverse sides or heads made famous by amitabh bachchan in sholay were rumoured to be found in an abandoned factory in kolkata the coins each tagged at rs 160000 were traded online for more than a month when khanna wrote to the kolkata mint that dismissed having produced any such coinscurrent favourite of forgers error coins coins with an aberration due to malfunction during the minting process the humble two rupee coin can fetch several thousands if has a crack or an extra stamp ive written to mints in mumbai kolkata hyderabad and none of them have confirmed having sold any scrap to any individual he says pulling out reams of letters and rtis to authorities hundreds of collectible coins are tucked away in albums beneath the electrical jumble in khannas kalbadevi shop interestingly some of the pieces are essentially worthless the man has spent close to rs 5 lakh over the past seven years collecting counterfeit coins its almost like converting my money into black but i had to do this to strengthen our claims in a court of law that will want to see evidence not pictures or speculations he signs off