Gym Lounge Owner Filed Complaint Against Employees
Gym Lounge Ahmedabad Gym Membership Dispute: Owner Alleges ₹1.66 Crore Diversion by Employees
A membership scheme at Ahmedabad-based fitness chain Gym Lounge has led to a police complaint alleging that ₹1.66 crore was collected from customers and kept outside the gym operator’s accounts.
The complaint was filed by Gym Lounge operator Vijay Sengar with the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of the Ahmedabad Crime Branch. It names Centre Head Jainish Shukla, Branch Manager Manish Sharma and Shukla’s wife Bharti Shukla.
The allegations are being investigated by police. The accused have not been convicted, and the details of the alleged transactions will have to be established during the investigation.
According to the complaint, the dispute began with a membership offer linked to Gym Lounge’s 10th anniversary. The gym offered 10 years of membership for ₹10,000 between July 1 and July 10, 2026.
After the offer ended, Sengar left Ahmedabad for work connected with another project. During his absence, the gym’s administration was handled by Shukla and Sharma, according to the complaint.
Police are examining an allegation that the two employees continued the ₹10,000 membership offer after its official closing date without Sengar’s approval.
The complaint says customers continued to approach the gym and take memberships under the expired offer. Payments were allegedly made through cash and UPI rather than being credited to the authorised Gym Lounge account.
The matter came to light after Sengar returned on September 10, according to reports based on the complaint. He noticed customers using the gym whose registrations did not appear to match the authorised membership records.
Some of those customers reportedly had receipts showing that they had paid for membership.
A subsequent check of the gym’s records and accounts allegedly found that the corresponding money was missing from the company’s bank account.
The complaint states that Sharma approached customers as an agent, explained the membership offer and collected payments. Investigators are now looking into the payment trail, including cash transactions and digital transfers.
There is some variation in public reports over the number of customers involved. One report puts the figure at about 1,500, while another says around 2,500. The amount alleged in the complaint is ₹1.66 crore. Police verification will be needed to establish the final number of affected customers and the exact transaction trail.
Another part of the complaint concerns an alleged false partnership document.
According to the reported allegations, Jainish Shukla and Bharti Shukla prepared a document that represented Shukla as a partner in Gym Lounge. The document was allegedly used to open a bank account under a name similar to Gym Lounge.
Police are examining whether payments collected from customers were routed through this account.
The complaint alleges that ₹1.66 crore was collected during the period in question and diverted through the separate financial arrangements. The police investigation will have to establish who controlled the account, who received the money and how the funds were used.
Reports have also alleged that the accused were planning to start another gym. This remains part of the allegations under investigation and has not been independently established.
For customers, the case raises a basic question about how membership payments are recorded and protected when a fitness centre offers long-term plans.
India’s paid fitness sector has expanded quickly in recent years. A Deloitte India and Health & Fitness Association report estimated that India had 12.3 million fitness-facility members and more than 46,500 commercial fitness facilities in 2024. The report projects the market to rise from about ₹16,200 crore in 2024 to ₹37,700 crore by 2030.
Long-term membership offers can involve large advance payments. That makes accurate billing, authorised payment channels and clear records important for both gym operators and customers.
In this case, the complaint alleges that customers paid for memberships and received receipts, while the money did not reach the gym operator’s authorised account. That is now one of the central issues before the EOW.
Gym Lounge has operated multiple branches in Ahmedabad, according to publicly available business listings. Listings identify locations in areas including Motera, New Ranip, South Bopal, Gota, Isanpur, Vastral and Nikol.
The business has also advertised long-duration anniversary membership schemes. In June 2026, public reports carried details of an 11-year membership offer for ₹11,000 linked to Gym Lounge’s anniversary.
The Ahmedabad Crime Branch’s Economic Offences Wing is now examining the complaint and related material. The reported investigation includes financial transactions and the alleged agreement and bank account.
Police action has also been reported against Bharti Shukla, while Jainish Shukla and Manish Sharma have been reported as unavailable to investigators. The exact legal status of each accused will depend on the investigation and subsequent court proceedings.
For customers who bought the disputed membership, the key question will be whether Gym Lounge recognises their payments and membership records and how the operator handles those memberships.
For the police, the task is more specific: establish the money trail, verify the documents, identify the people who handled the payments and determine whether the allegations made in the complaint are supported by evidence.
The ₹1.66 crore figure gives the case its financial scale, but the investigation will ultimately turn on records: receipts, bank statements, UPI transactions, membership data and other evidence collected by the EOW.
