A police investigation has been launched against the owners of an Ahmedabad-based finance company who are alleged of duping 495 people out of Rs 2.78 crore over the course of three years through various financial scandals.
“The accused Mahesh Bhadra, his son Chirag Bhadra and wife Mamata Bhadra, residents of Nava Naroda in Ahmedabad who own the finance company Anand Enterprises, have been booked for fraud in an FIR registered at the Detection of Crime Branch (DCB) police station in Ahmedabad”,cops said.
Mahesh allegedly ran several Ponzi schemes in which people were encouraged to deposit a monthly instalment as a ticket to enter a grand prize lucky draw or to obtain insurance coverage, according to the police. According to the police, the accused encouraged victims to become “agents” for his company and attract investments in exchange for commissions through a pyramid-style Ponzi scheme.
According to the victims, a total of 18 agents deposited Rs 2.78 crore with Anand Enterprises between 2018 and 2021, but no one received any money.
The complainant, Fenil Rathod, is one of Anand Enterprises’ agents who began his career as a pantry worker for the company. “I contacted 34 people and deposited Rs 20.5 lakh in one of the schemes over a three-year period, with each monthly investment of Rs 1,600 per person.” “However, no lucky draw winner was announced, nor was the investors’ money refunded in accordance with the company’s rules,” Rathod claimed in his complaint.
The three accused have been charged under the Gujarat Protection of Depositors Act, the Prize Chits and Money Circulation Schemes (Banning) Act, and sections 406 (criminal breach of trust), 409 (criminal breach of trust by merchant), 420 (fraud), and 120b (criminal conspiracy) of the IPC.