Bhubaneswar: With the Crime Branch (CB) of Odisha police yet to file the charge sheet against Oscar Group chief Prabhas Rout for his involvement in the Rs 230 crore chit fund scam, nearly 20 investors of the company from Gujarat staged a demonstration in front of the State Assembly here on Friday and demanded the seizure of properties belonging to the company.
“We request the Crime Branch to seize the properties of Oscar Group in Gujarat and return the money to the poor investors by disposing them of. We also urge the Odisha government to take immediate action against the fraud company in this regard and return our money as soon as possible,” said an investor from Gujarat.
Raising doubts about the current ownership of the company’s properties, an investor alleged that the assets of Oscar Group have not been sealed yet.
“We know some properties which belong to the Oscar Group. But surprisingly these have not yet been sealed by the investigating authorities. How do we know whether the properties are still owned by the Group or have been disposed of,” the investor said.
The placard-bearing agitators demanded that the Ollywood actors invited by the company to promote it in the western state, should be brought under the purview of investigation. They urged the Odisha government to expedite the probe.
Meanwhile under fire for his alleged links with chit fund promoter-cum-film producer Rout, Ollywood actor Uttam Mohanty has offered to return the amount paid to him for acting in a movie produced by him in 2010.
"Though I got the money for my acting, I am ready to return the money to the State government on moral grounds," Mohanty stated. He, however, clarified he would not request other actors to return the money they have received from the company.
Mohanty said he is undecided whether he would also return the money taken from Rout for the alleged promotional campaigns for his Ponzi firm Oscar Group in Surat in 2008-09.
The actor said that he has not yet received any notice from the CB in connection with the case.
Official sources said the CB, which is probing the Oscar chit fund scam, has issued notices to five Ollywood artists, including Mohanty and arrested comedian Tatwa Prakash Satapathy aka Papu Pom Pom, Jina, Lipi and Kajal over their alleged links with the Ponzi firm, sources said. The investigating agency has asked them to depose before it within two weeks.