Lok Sabha passes bill to curb ponzi schemes; protect poor

In a bid to save gullible investors from ponzi schemes, Lok Sabha on Friday unanimously passed the Banning of Unregulated Deposit Schemes Bill, 2019 that seeks to put in place a mechanism by which poor depositors get back their hard earned money.

The Banning of Unregulated Deposit Schemes Bill, 2019 replaced the Ordinance on the same.

Replying to a debate on the Bill, Minister of State for Finance Anurag Singh Thakur said that the Bill is an effort to protect the hard earned money of the poor people.

The Bill is part of the Narendra Modi government's effort to bring back money looted by some high and mighty people, he said during debate on the maiden Bill piloted by him.

In IMA scandal, it was the Modi government which brought the culprits, he said.

Thanking members for the support, he said, this reflects that when it comes to the cause of poor, the House unanimously supports.

The Bill states that the first claim on the recovered money will be of depositors and the proposed legislation also has some exclusion including money collected by real estate firms and from friends and relatives.

The bill will give power to both central and state governments to frame rules, he said, adding 978 cases have been identified so far and of this 326 are in West Bengal