WHAT IS SARADHA SCAM CASE

Saradha Scam
The Saradha scam, also known as Saradha Group financial scandal, was a major financial scam that surfaced in 2013.
Investigation into the multi-crore ponzi scheme has been on since then.
The Saradha scheme
The scheme, run by Saradha Group (an umbrella company with 200 private players), was launched in the early 2000s by businessman Sudipto Sen. Aimed at small investors, the scheme became popular in a very short time as it promised high returns. The money was collected through a wide network of agents, who were paid commissions of over 25 per cent.
The Saradha Group raised about Rs 2,500 crore in a few years time. The company used varied marketing means to build its brand. Apart from popular marketing techniques like celebrity endorsements, the company used to sponsor cultural events such as Durga Puja and invest in popular football clubs to attract more investors.
The scheme soon expanded to Odisha, Assam, and Tripura, and the number of investors reached close to 1.7 million.
The TMC connection
Over a dozen TMC MLAs and MPs, including ministers, have been questioned by CBI in connection with the scam. Many of these leaders were directly involved in the group's operations.
Actor and TMC leader Satabdi Roy was Saradha's brand ambassador. Then TMC MP Kunal Ghosh was appointed CEO of the media group in which Saradha had invested Rs 988 crore. Another party leader Srinjoy Bose was also involved in the group's media operations.
Madan Mitra, the then West Bengal Transport Minister, headed the group’s employees’ union.
Apart from TMC, the group allegedly also had connections with Congress leader Matang Sinh and Assam BJP leader Himanta Biswa Sarma, who was then in the Congress.
How the Saradha scam unravelled
Problems started in the company in 2012, when SEBI asked the group to stop accepting money from investors and obtain the regulator's permission to run its schemes.
By January 2013, the company was engulfed in a crisis when for the first time Saradha Group’s cash inflows were found to be lower than its outflows. The scheme collapsed by April, prompting agents and investors to file police complaints.
SIT and CBI probe
The West Bengal government initially set up a Special Investigation Team (SIT), headed by the then Kolkata Police Commissioner, Rajeev Kumar, to probe the case. The case was transferred to the CBI in 2014 at the behest of Supreme Court.
CBI considers Kumar as a potential accused in the case and has accused him of not handing over crucial documents to the agency.
Kumar first grabbed headlines in February 2019, when the CBI was stopped by the Kolkata police, from questioning him.
Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee rushed to the spot and staged a three-day sit-in protest against CBI's move.
SARADHA SCAM NEWS
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Saradha scam: Salaries were paid from CM relief fund, says CBI
In a development which may further increase the political heat in West Bengal where Assembly polls are slated early next year| December 27, 2020, Sunday -
Saradha scam ghost back as CBI moves SC to quiz former top cop
The ghost of the multi-crore Saradha ponzi scam is back to haunt the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress in the state| December 27, 2020, Sunday -
Saradha chit fund case: SC seeks Rajeev Kumar's response on CBI bail appeal
A bench headed by Chief justice S A Bobde told Solicitor General Tushar Mehta that the agency has to convince the top court why ...| November 29, 2019, Friday -
CBI searches for former Kolkata top cop, serves deadline for questioning
The probe agency on Thursday also moved a city court seeking an arrest warrant against Rajeev Kumar in the Saradha ponzi scheme ...| September 19, 2019, Thursday -
Special court refuses to hear Rajeev Kumar's anticipatory bail plea
The special court, in charge of trial of criminal cases against MPs and MLAs, said it is a trial court and cannot hear an ...| September 17, 2019, Tuesday -
Former Kolkata police commissioner Rajeev Kumar fails to appear before CBI
Rajeev Kumar's anticipatory bail application is likely to come up before a special CBI court| September 17, 2019, Tuesday -
Ex-Kolkata police chief Rajeev Kumar skips CBI summons, seeks more time
A CID official visited the CBI office in Salt Lake and submitted the letter, in which Kumar said he is on a three-day off and, ...| May 27, 2019, Monday -
Saradha scam: CBI summons ex-Kolkata police chief Rajeev Kumar on Monday
A team of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) visited Kumar's official residence in Kolkata on Sunday evening to serve the ...| May 26, 2019, Sunday -
CBI issues lookout notice against Rajeev Kumar in Saradha scam case
The agency wants custodial interrogation of Kumar, a 1989-batch IPS officer, in connection with Rs 2500 crore Saradha ponzi scam ...| May 26, 2019, Sunday -
Saradha scam: SC rejects ex-Kolkata cop plea seeking protection from arrest
Kumar was earlier granted protection from arrest by the apex court for seven days which ends today| May 24, 2019, Friday