CBI arrests Ramel Industries directors in chit fund scam

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Monday arrested the directors of West Bengal-based Ramel Industries Ltd in its ongoing probe into the multi-crore chit fund scam.

Ramendra Mohan Sarkar and Sukanta Deb, directors of Ramel Industries, were arrested on charges of criminal breach of trust and cheating.

The agency had filed a case against the company, its directors and other unidentified persons on November 28, 2014.

"It was alleged that the directors of Ramel Industries had collected money from the investors under its investment scheme by fraudulently promising very high returns and also without the permission from the regulatory bodies, and later misappropriated it," a CBI official said.

The official said the accused had allegedly closed its operations and wound up its business, thereby cheating the investors.

The Supreme Court on May 9, 2014, ordered a CBI inquiry into the chit fund scams in West Bengal, Odisha and Assam in which various firms, including Saradha, allegedly duped investors collectively of around Rs 10,000 crore.

Ramel Industries had been on the CBI radar after the Saradha bubble burst.

In May 2014, Sebi had barred promoters of Ramel Industries, which is a non Saradha ponzi firm, from raising money from the public.

It also barred them from accessing capital markets till it refunded around Rs 98 crore. According to sources, the group allegedly did not pay heed and continued raising money from the public.

The company reportedly has raised around Rs 100 crore.

--IANS

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