Assets worth crores of Rupees of ponzi firm IMA attached

Karnataka government on Wednesday said, it has attached assets worth crores of Rupees belonging to 'I Monetary Advisory' (IMA) group that is involved in a multi-crore ponzi scam, to protect the interest of depositors.

A CID probe has also been ordered into a similar fraudulent investment scam in Bengaluru Rural district by some companies and Deputy Commissioners of all districts have been asked to submit a report to the Revenue department on such "dubious companies" in three months.

"The IMA case has taken many major turns. The Revenue Department has now ordered attachment of the properties related to IMA and its group entities," Revenue Minister R Ashoka told reporters here.

He said "the government was convinced that IMA has made people believe in their business and collected money from them as investment and then did not pay them capital and profit share amount and thereby indulged in fraud.

So, in order to protect the interests of the investors, I have approved the attachment of movable and immovable properties of the company by the Revenue Department," he said.

Among the properties attached by the government were 17 in Bengaluru with a market value of Rs 21.73 crore, Demand Drafts worth Rs 8.86 crore, gold and silver ornaments and materials worth Rs 91.57 lakh and 5,880 fake gold biscuits weighing 303.07 kg.

An amount of Rs 2.85 crore cash was also seized.

The government had recently entrusted the CBI to probe the IMA scam, in which over one lakh people, mostly Muslims, were were duped.

IMA director Mohammed Mansoor Khan had allegedly duped investors, promising high returns, saying he was promoting Islamic way of investment.

Many touts and some religious preachers were also among those who lured people to invest in the IMA.

The case came to light a couple of months ago when Khan fled the country, leaving behind a video message saying he would commit suicide because of "corruption in the state and central governments".

He was later brought back to India from Dubai and is currently in judicial custody.

The IMA properties were attached under relevant sections of the 'Karnataka Protection of Interest of Depositors in Financial Establishment Act, 2004 (Karnataka Act 30 of 2005).

Ashoka said such scams were growing and the government would take 'merciless action' to put an end to 'mafia' like fake investment firms