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Bhubaneswar: Bollywood’s chit fund link has now come to the fore with several actors found to have promoted Prayag group that duped hundreds of investors in West Bengal.
From Shah Rukh Khan to Soha Ali Khan, several actors had promoted Prayag group’s ventures.
According to reports, Shahrukh Khan had endorsed the Rs 1,000 crore film city project that was inaugurated in over 2,700 acre in Chandrakona of West Midnapore district on April 15, 2012.
After busting Prayag chit fund scam in neighbouring West Bengal, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has now taken up the probe to unearth its operation in several parts of Odisha.
Also Read : Over 1,200 investors refunded by Chit fund firms: Enquiry panel
As per sources, the Prayag group had a major plan to set up a film city in Odisha while the company had also sought assistance from State government to invest in fisheries and setting up of nurseries here.
The company had planned for a nursery on 100 acres of land in Bhubaneswar and its mega film city project would have come up in Balasore. The land acquisition process for the film city project has almost been completed.
A senior CBI official said that the entire focus of the investigation would be ascertaining the role of influential people who assisted the company in its investment plans. A complete inquiry on the entire financial transactions would also be done.
Prayag group’s Chairman, Basudeb Bagchi (father) and director Avik Bagchi (son) are now lodged at Jharpara jail here in Bhubaneswar after their arrest basing on allegations that they had duped Rs 1,900 crores from several investors in West Bengal.
More than 150 FIRs against Prayag group have been filed by hundreds of depositors in the neighbouring state.