The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Wednesday registered the first set of 46 FIRs, three in West Bengal and 43 in Odisha, in the multi-crore Saradha chit fund scam.
The CBI filed cases against the Group CMD, directors and the CEO of its media group. More FIRs are likely to be filed.
The Saradha Group, which had collected thousands of crores of rupees across West Bengal, Odisha, and Assam, went bust in April 2013.
It is alleged that lakhs of depositors in West Bengal and Odisha lost money in the scam.
Ponzi schemes floated by the Group offered returns upwards of 40 per cent. The bust triggered agitations in Kolkata, with several people — agents and depositors — committing suicide.
Chairman, son arrestedThe Group Chairman, Sudipta Sen, was arrested by the West Bengal police in April 2013 from Kashmir, and has since then been in jail. His son, Subhojit, was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in April this year.
Apart from Sen and his son, former Trinamool Congress Parliamentarian Kunal Ghosh, who worked with the Saradha Group as its media group head, was also arrested. Ghosh’s name is likely to feature in the CBI FIRs too. The CBI has filed cases under various sections of the Indian Penal Code, including 120B (criminal conspiracy), 420 (cheating) and 405 (breach of trust), said a senior CBI official.
According to a release issued by the CBI, the FIRs cover the four front-running companies of the Group.
Other documents relating to the Group are being scrutinised for further action. The documents of certain firms other than of the Saradha Group are also in the process of being collected and scrutinised.
The Supreme Court had handed over the case to the CBI in May considering the amount involved and because the victims were spread over several States.
It had asked the State Governments of West Bengal, Jharkhand, Assam, and Chhattisgarh to provide all logistical help to the CBI team probing the matter.
The registration of FIRs is considered a setback for West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who had initially opposed a CBI probe.