Seashore Group chief questioned over chit fund scam

Odisha police Friday started interrogation of Seashore Group chairman Prashant Dash after he was arrested in connection with a multi-crore-rupee chit fund scam in the state, an official said.

Dash was arrested from Mumbai by a team of the economic offences wing of the state's crime branch police Wednesday evening. He was brought to state capital Bhubaneswar Friday on a six-day transit remand.

He was immediately taken from the airport to the office of the crime branch, where investigators questioned him for several hours, a senior crime branch official told IANS.

Seashore Group, which operates several businesses in cooperation with the state government's health and tourism departments, has been accused of collecting money from thousands of people in the state by promising high returns.

Police had registered several cases against Dash and the group's five directors in July last year after a large number of investors lodged complaints against them for not returning the assured money.

Although Dash had secured anticipatory bail from Odisha High Court, he was arrested in connection with a fresh case of fraud, the official said.

Police had earlier raided various offices of the group in the state and sealed them off. Established in 2005, Seashore Group has been working in sectors including insurance, healthcare, IT and telecom, media, retail, education and agriculture. The company has denied any wrongdoing.