Odisha chit fund scam: Seashore Group CMD appears before ED for second time

Seashore Group CMD Prashant Das deposed before the Enforcement Directorate for the second time on Monday. 

According to the reports, the Seashore Group of companies collected money from people from 2006. Such collections were done without the permission of the Reserve Bank of India and the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI). The company had invested the collected money in several sectors. 

Presently, the ED has started investigating into the old chit-fund cases, looking for political links in the Rs 578-crore scam. As a part of this, the ED grilled Das on Monday for the second time. The ED had quizzed him last Friday as well. 

Also Read: Seashore chit fund scam: Charges framed against ex-Choudwar-Cuttack MLA Pravat Biswal 

The ED has been interrogating Das because it is said that the ED is convinced that more assets of Das haven’t been attached as yet. 

It is alleged that the people involved in several chit fund cases be it Seashore chit fund, AT chit fund or Rose Valley chit fund are now out on bail and are maintaining luxurious lives. Hence, they are now coming under the scanner of the ED. The agency is now reportedly quizzing them to find leads so that more assets can be attached. They have been summoned to depose before the ED in phases. The ED is learnt to be looking into their political links. 

Notably, the ED had attached Seashore Group’s assets worth over Rs 150 crore under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act in December 2014. It had again attached the company’s properties worth Rs 84 crore in January 2015.