After MPS and Pailan, Suraha MFI investors seek Rs 2000 cr refunds

The investigation of Saradha scam might have shifted to Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), but at the office of Shyamal Sen Commission, constituted to investigate the Saradha scam, there is no dearth of public rage.

Not even a week after investors of MPS and Pailan Group staged protests outside the Sen commission for Rs 700 crore defaults by the two companies, investors of another company, Suraha Microfinance, today gathered at the commission claiming Rs 2000 crore as due from the company.

Unlike Saradha and other money pooling companies, Suraha Microfinance had been operating in nearly 10 states, according to investors. The company had been irregular in payments since 2010, while legal proceedings continue.

Notably, in 2011, Reserve Bank of India had issued a public notice against and Suraha Micro Finance of Sunmarg group, along with Amazon Capital for illegally raising deposits.

According to investors of Suraha, the company had given its investors 30% their dues as post-dated cheques for December 2014 redemption. This apart, it had promised closed to 10% of the dues by early this year. However, so far the company had not given any payments to its investors, according to investors.

"The company has raised nothing less than Rs 2000 crore so far. There had been five hearings, but the owner of Suraha have not come. They shifted their office to Mumbai about two years back," said Dilip Ranjan Nath, an investor at Suraha.

Suraha Microfinance used to raise deposits through fixed deposits, monthly income scheme and recurring deposits, among other means, said Nath.

"When I approached a local police station for registering a complain against Suraha, I was told that I would be imprisoned if I lodge a complain," said Roshin Bibi (name changed), another investor of Suraha.

The website of Suraha Microfinance says that it was the the largest gold financing company in India in terms of loan portfolio, according to the 2010 update to the IMaCS Research & Analytics Industry Reports, Gold Loans Market in India, 2009.

During the Saradha probe itself, the Sen Commission received about 1.7 million applications. Although most of these had deposited money in Saradha, investors of other companies such as Amazon, Suraha Microfinance, Sunmarg, ICore, Rose Valley and Alchemist have also registered complaints with the commission.

So far Sebi has orders against several companies including, Vibgyor Allied Infrastructure, Prayag Infotech Hi-Rise, Alchemist, MPS Greenery Developers and Rose Valley, to name a few, to wind up collective investment schemes for three years, without much impact.

Unlike Saradha, the commission has so far not promised to pay the defrauded investors of companies other than Saradha, from a government kitty, but assured them to persuade them to pay the money.