Latest news with #BanningofUnregulatedDepositSchemesAct
Hans India
4 days ago
- Business
- Hans India
Surathkal duo booked for Rs 10-crore deposit scheme fraud
Mangaluru: Two Katipalla residents have been accused of running an unlicensed deposit scheme that police believe defrauded more than 10,000 investors. The accused — identified as M. Mohammed Ashraf, proprietor of 'New India Royal Scheme', and his manager Haneef — allegedly promised investors a return of ₹12,000 on payments of ₹1,000 a month for 10 months, with the added lure of prizes such as cars, motorcycles, and gold jewellery. A complaint filed by one investor states he completed his final payment in April 2025, but the organisers repeatedly delayed settlement. Police said the office was shut two months ago and calls from investors went unanswered. Investigators estimate that deposits exceeding ₹10 crore were collected without regulatory approval. The case has been booked under the Banning of Unregulated Deposit Schemes Act at Surathkal Police Station.
Time of India
26-07-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Online shopping scam: Kerala HC directs transfer of provisionally attached amount to interest-bearing treasury deposit
Kochi: High court has directed the competent authority under the BUDS Act to ensure that the provisionally attached amount, exceeding Rs 200 crore and lying in various bank accounts in connection with the scam-hit High Rich Online Shopee case, is transferred to an interest-bearing treasury deposit within two weeks. The bench of Justice P Gopinath issued the order on Monday in a petition filed by High Rich Online Shoppe Pvt Ltd and its directors, K D Dasan and his wife K S Sreena, challenging the actions taken under the Banning of Unregulated Deposit Schemes Act, 2019 (BUDS Act). The directive was issued after considering the fact that the amounts on deposit admittedly exceed Rs 200 crore, and that it would be in the interest of the depositors for the funds to earn interest rather than remain idle in current accounts across various banks. HC further directed that the details of the treasury deposit, including the applicable rate of interest, be duly intimated to it by the competent authority immediately after the transfer and deposit of the amount. Accordingly, the matter was adjourned to Aug 13. Previously, a crime had been registered at the Cherpu police station in Thrissur under the BUDS Act against the petitioners, based on a private complaint in a financial fraud case. The complainant alleged that High Rich was engaged in multi-level marketing, thereby conducting a money chain business. Similar cases were also registered against the petitioners at the Ernakulam, Sulthan Bathery and Kannur police stations. In 2023, the additional chief secretary (home), acting as the competent authority under the Act, provisionally attached the assets.
Mint
09-07-2025
- Mint
What is Bengaluru chit fund scam? Couple behind ₹40 crore fraud flees to Kenya. Here's what investors say
A couple hailing from Kerala and residing in Bengaluru has fled to Kenya, East Africa, after allegedly cheating hundreds of people through a chit fund scam, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Bengaluru East), D Devaraja, said. Police have registered a complaint and launched an investigation after more than 400 complaints -- mainly from Kerala - surfaced against them. The couple, identified as Tomy and Shiny, were operating A&A Chits and Finance, which promised investors high returns. The couple had been in the business for around 25 years and lured customers with returns ranging from 15 to 20 per cent. A chit fund is a rotating savings and credit scheme, where a group of people contributes a fixed sum regularly. In each cycle, one member receives the total collection, either by auction or draw. D Devaraja further revealed that the couple had liquidated the movable and immovable assets they owned before disappearing. 'They sold their house and cars below market price to different people. Till today, the total number of complaints received is more than 400. The total amount cheated is almost ₹ 40 crore. Most of the complaints are from Kerala. The accused left the country for Kenya on the 3rd on a tourist visa. Now we are going through bank details and financial transactions,' he said. A First Information Report has been registered against the duo under BNS 318, 317, the Chit Funds Act of 1982, and various sections of the BUDS Act (Banning of Unregulated Deposit Schemes Act, 2019). Devastated investors have come forward sharing how the accused family vanished without a trace during the city's 'Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) victory celebrations'. Navina, one of the victims, told news agency ANI, 'We met the Commissioner because we have been victims of fraud by an entire family. The entire family absconded during the RCB victory celebrations when the whole city was celebrating. They took advantage of that moment to run away. It's been one month since they disappeared and we have no clue about their whereabouts. We are still searching for them.' She also revealed that despite their efforts, the situation remains uncertain. 'The bank says their house is under loan, and their properties are now being attached. What do we do now? The accused have been running this chit fund for 23 years and earned the trust of so many people. Almost 700 families invested in the name of trust. I personally invested ₹ 10 lakh.' Another investor, who claimed to have known the family for nearly 30 years, told the news agency: 'I invested ₹ 30 lakh. We trusted them for decades, but the whole family cheated us. They duped around 700 people. We even met DK Shivakumar and the home minister seeking help.' Tomy and Shiny ran a chit fund company called A&A Chits and Finance, where they promised people high returns of 15-20 per cent on their savings. At first, they gained people's trust by paying the promised returns on time. This encouraged more people to invest larger amounts, even using money saved for important things like children's education, medical expenses, and weddings. Some people even sold their properties to invest. But recently, the couple stopped paying returns and switched off their phones. They shut down their office and disappeared, leaving investors unable to reach them.
Mint
09-07-2025
- Mint
What is Bengaluru chit fund scam? Couple behind ₹40 crore fraud flees to Kenya. Here's what investors say
A couple hailing from Kerala and residing in Bengaluru has fled to Kenya, East Africa, after allegedly cheating hundreds of people through a chit fund scam, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Bengaluru East), D Devaraja, said. Police have registered a complaint and launched an investigation after more than 400 complaints -- mainly from Kerala - surfaced against them. The couple, identified as Tomy and Shiny, were operating A&A Chits and Finance, which promised investors high returns. The couple had been in the business for around 25 years and lured customers with returns ranging from 15 to 20 percent. A chit fund is a rotating savings and credit scheme, where a group of people contributes a fixed sum regularly. In each cycle, one member receives the total collection, either by auction or draw. D Devaraja further revealed that the couple had liquidated the movable and immovable assets they owned before disappearing. 'They sold their house and cars below market price to different people. Till today, the total number of complaints received is more than 400. The total amount cheated is almost ₹ 40 crore. Most of the complaints are from Kerala. The accused left the country for Kenya on the 3rd on a tourist visa. Now we are going through bank details and financial transactions,' he said. A First Information Report has been registered against the duo under BNS 318, 317, the Chit Funds Act of 1982, and various sections of the BUDS Act (Banning of Unregulated Deposit Schemes Act, 2019). Devastated investors have come forward sharing how the accused family vanished without a trace during the city's 'Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) victory celebrations'. Navina, one of the victims, told news agency ANI, 'We met the Commissioner because we have been victims of fraud by an entire family. The entire family absconded during the RCB victory celebrations when the whole city was celebrating. They took advantage of that moment to run away. It's been one month since they disappeared and we have no clue about their whereabouts. We are still searching for them.' She also revealed that despite their efforts, the situation remains uncertain. 'The bank says their house is under loan, and their properties are now being attached. What do we do now? The accused have been running this chit fund for 23 years and earned the trust of so many people. Almost 700 families invested in the name of trust. I personally invested ₹ 10 lakh.' Another investor, who claimed to have known the family for nearly 30 years told news agency: 'I invested ₹ 30 lakh. We trusted them for decades, but the whole family cheated us. They duped around 700 people. We even met DK Shivakumar and the home minister seeking help.' Tomy and Shiny ran a chit fund company called A&A Chits and Finance, where they promised people high returns of 15-20% on their savings. At first, they gained people's trust by paying the promised returns on time. This encouraged more people to invest larger amounts, even using money saved for important things like children's education, medical expenses, and weddings. Some people even sold their properties to invest. But recently, the couple stopped paying returns and switched off their phones. They shut down their office and disappeared, leaving investors unable to reach them. Police say that over 400 people have filed complaints, claiming they lost huge amounts of money An NDTV report says the company was facing a major financial crisis, which likely caused the scam to collapse.
Time of India
27-06-2025
- Business
- Time of India
EOW challenges Buds court order
T'puram: Economic offence wing (EOW) of crime branch approached the high court, challenging the Buds court's order that refused to take cognizance under Section 3 of the Buds Act against the accused in the BSNL Engineers Cooperative Society deposit fraud. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Recovery proceedings against the accused can be initiated only if section 3 of the Banning of Unregulated Deposit Schemes Act (Buds Act) withstands. Section 3 bans the operation of unregulated deposit schemes and prohibits deposit takers from promoting, operating, or accepting deposits. The accused cheated hundreds of people by offering interest on deposits on the grounds that the society was registered under the registrar of cooperative societies and its businesses were regulated by the registrar. Since it was a regulated business, section 3 would not stand, observed the Buds court. It was also observed that the issues of such societies can be raised with the Buds Court by the regulator of such societies. In such situations, Sections 4 and 7 of the Buds Act will stand, not Section 3. The probe agency challenged this at the HC stating that the business of the society was fully unregulated as the accused flouted all the norms of the byelaws and cooperative rules. The court will consider the plea on July 2. The depositors also have filed an impleading petition. TNN
