CBI nabs three directors of Bengal ponzi firm

Probing the chit fund scam in West Bengal, the Central Bureau of Investgation (CBI) on Tuesday arrested three directors of MPS Greenery Developers Ltd, a ponzi firm alleged to have amassed crores of rupees through illegal schemes.

"The CBI today (on Tuesday) arrested Shantanu Chowdhury, Prabir Kumar Chanda and Madhusudan Adhikari, all directors of MPS Greenery Developers Ltd.

"The accused allegedly in conspiracy with company chairman and managing director P.N. Manna, collected huge funds illegally and helped in misappropriation of funds collected from poor investors," said an agency official.

Manna was arrested in September last year on charges of cheating, forgery, criminal breach of trust and criminal conspiracy and has been in custody since then.

MPS Greenery is one of the several non Saradha Group companies against which the CBI has registered cases while probing the multi-crore rupee Saradha chit fund scam.

According to the agency, the company allegedly collected approximately Rs.2,500 crore from the public without valid permission from any regulatory body and funds were diverted and siphoned off.

The SEBI in 2013 had issued an advisory warning the general public against investing in the company.

The CBI on January 17 had conducted search operation in nine locations across Bengal in pursuance of its probe.

Earlier in April the Calcutta High Court had directed the company directors to furnish details of its assets while hearing petition by the company's investors alleging the company was continuing to raise public money illegally.