I-T to probe Saradha investment schemes

The Income Tax department will probe investments and finances of Kolkata-based Saradha group which is hitting headlines for allegedly defrauding thousands of depositors.
The department will probe the group even as it is investigating five other similar cases of this kind in West Bengal since last year, top sources in the department said.
Showcause notices for production of documents and recording of statements of promoters, investors and prominent agents in this case could be issued soon, they said.
The I-T, according to sources, will also go through the business and personal accounts of the Chairman of the Saradha group Sudipto Sen and his close associates and the transactions of the groups' various investment schemes, they said.

The I-T will also sift all the bank drafts and fixed deposits of the group to check if there were any irregularities as alleged by numerous investors of the schemes floated by the group.
Investors and agents of various investment schemes launched by Saradha group in West Bengal have been protesting against the group alleging dubious ways. The issue has also snow-balled into a political controversy with various parties blaming each other for not taking enough steps to rein in fraudulent deposit-taking activities.
The department had in 2011 cracked a Rs 150 crore 'ponzi' or chitfund scam in West Bengal's Asansol and subsequently it brought on radar a few other firms dealing in this illegal duping business in the state.