ED raids nine places in UP, Maharashtra and Rajasthan in money laundering case against Sahara group

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has searched nine premises across Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Maharashtra in connection with a money laundering case against the Sahara group, the agency said on Tuesday.

ED's Kolkata zonal office conducted the searches at the premises of suspects located at Uttar Pradesh's Ghaziabad and Lucknow; Rajasthan's Sri Ganganagar; and Maharashtra's Mumbai on August 11 under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002.

"Entities searched were related to various land and share transactions with entities of the Sahara group," said the ED in a statement.



ED initiated an investigation based on three First Information Reports (FIRs) registered under Sections 420 and 120B of the Indian Penal Code, 1860, against Humara India Credit Cooperative Society Ltd (HICCSL) and others by police in Odisha, Bihar, and Rajasthan.

Over 500 FIRs have been registered against various Sahara Group entities, with more than 300 involving scheduled offences under the PMLA, alleging large-scale cheating of depositors through forced redeposits and denial of maturity payments.

ED investigation revealed that "Sahara group was operating a Ponzi scheme through entities like HICCSL, SCCSL, SUMCS, SMCSL, SICCL, SIRECL, SHICL, and others by luring depositors and agents with promises of high returns and commissions."

"The funds were managed in an unregulated manner without depositor oversight, maturity proceeds were not repaid, instead reinvested under coercion or misrepresentation, and books were manipulated to camouflage such non-repayments," said the federal agency.

Despite financial incapacity, ED stated that the group continued to collect fresh deposits, part of which was "siphoned off for dubious share transactions, creation of benami assets and personal expenses."

"Assets of the group were also sold for partial cash payments, further denying rightful claims of depositors. During the search, incriminating documents and records were seized and statements of key persons were recorded," it further pointed out.

Earlier, the agency said, three provisional attachment orders in the instant case have been issued attaching 707 acres of land having approximate market value of Rs 1,460 crore in Amby Valley; 1,023 acres of land having approximate value of Rs 1,538 crore in Sahara Prime City Ltd and movable assets of Chandni Roy, wife of Seemanto Roy, worth Rs 14.75 crore.

Further, ED had earlier arrested Anil Vailaparampil Abraham, Executive Director of the Sahara group chairman's Core Management (CCM) Office, and Jitendra Prasad Verma, a long-time associate and property broker of the Sahara group. They remain in judicial custody.