Mother-Daughter Duo Held In Bengal For Rs 10,000 Crore Chit Fund Scam
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The mother-daughter duo allegedly siphoned off funds from multiple states, including West Bengal, and laundered the money to China and Dubai via hawala channels
Thousands were drawn into what appeared to be a lucrative investment scheme, lured by the promise of high returns and rewards for recruiting new members. The illusion fell apart when Odisha Police arrested a mother-daughter duo for allegedly running a fraudulent company and siphoning off nearly Rs 10,000 crore from the market.
The accused, Deepika Bhanj and Tandra Bhanj, were taken into custody from Ramnagar in Purba Medinipur district in West Bengal for allegedly enticing investors with false promises of substantial profits, police officials said.
The Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of the Odisha police apprehended the two women from Hamirpur village under the Ramnagar police station and brought them to Bhubaneswar. Investigators suspect that the company may have connections with Bangladesh. It is alleged that the Bhanjs siphoned off funds from several states, including West Bengal and laundered the money to locations like China and Dubai through hawala channels.
The alleged mastermind behind the scheme is Tushar Bhanj, husband of Deepika Bhanj, who had set up multiple companies years ago. He appointed his wife and daughter as directors in some of them while also holding a directorial position himself. According to police, the company later expanded its operations by opening offices in several locations.
Tushar was reportedly arrested in 2024 during the investigation after a resident of Bhubaneswar filed a complaint upon not receiving their invested money. Since then, Deepika and Tandra had been evading arrest until their capture on Tuesday in Ramnagar, police said.
Police sources indicate that Tushar's elaborate scam has defrauded over 15,000 people across multiple states, including Odisha, Bihar, Assam and Chhattisgarh, over the past three-four years, amassing around Rs 10,000 crore.
Following an investigation, police traced the accused mother-daughter duo to Ramnagar in East Medinipur district. On Tuesday, Odisha Police conducted a raid and arrested them from Hamirpur in the Ramnagar-2 block.
First Published:
May 29, 2025, 13:58 IST
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