After scamming hundreds in UAE, Indian court Heera Group chief told to pay Rs250 million or face jail
India's Supreme Court has given Nowhera Shaik, managing director of Heera Group, three months to return Dh10.57 million (Rs 25 crore) to investors or face jail.
Shaik, accused of running a massive Ponzi-style gold investment scheme, allegedly defrauded over 100,000 investors out of Dh2.36 billion (Rs5,600 crore). Among them were hundreds of UAE investors who had poured their savings into Heera Gold, drawn by promises of lucrative monthly payouts and high dividends.
In a hearing on Wednesday, the Supreme Court ordered the country's Enforcement Directorate (ED) to take Shaik into custody if she fails to refund the specified amount within the deadline. The court said she had repeatedly defied court orders since November 11, 2024, when she was given more time to make the payment.
'We propose, as a last opportunity, that the accused deposit Rs250 million (Dh10.57 million) within three months. If she fails, her bail will be automatically canceled, and she will be sent back to jail,' Justice JB Pardiwala stated.
The Heera Group aggressively marketed high-return investment plans in India and Middle East. In the UAE, the company claimed that a Dh100,000 investment in Heera Gold would yield Dh3,250 in monthly payouts with a one-year lock-in period.
Other schemes, such as Heera Textiles and Heera Foodex, promised annual returns of 65 to 80 per cent on deposits starting at Dh15,000 with a two-year lock-in. Many investors even took out loans, believing the returns were guaranteed.
However, in 2018, the payouts stopped, and the company collapsed. Shaik was arrested, leaving many UAE investors in financial ruin. Desperate victims attempted to locate Heera's operations in Jumeirah Lake Towers and warehouses in Ras Al Khaimah and Sharjah, but found nothing. Shaik's lawyer, senior advocate Kapil Sibal, argued that she lacked the funds to make the court-ordered refund.
However, the ED countered that several of her properties had already been attached, yet her legal team failed to disclose them when asked to list assets that could be auctioned. Shaik provided details of only three properties, of which two in Telangana are now set to be sold.
Meanwhile, the Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO) continues to probe the case, with multiple First Information Reports (FIRs) filed against Shaik across India. Cases remain pending in Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Delhi.
Heera Gold initially paid out dividends of up to 36 per cent, reinforcing investor confidence, but when payments stopped in 2018, complaints flooded in. Shaik was arrested in October that year, and since then, legal proceedings have dragged on as investors fight to recover their funds.
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