ED Attaches 707 Acres of Land in Sahara Group Money Laundering Probe
The Enforcement Directorate attaches land worth Rs. 1,460 crore in connection with ongoing investigations into the Sahara Group's alleged Ponzi scheme
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) in Kolkata has provisionally attached 707 acres of land, valued at approximately Rs. 1,460 crore, in and around Aamby Valley City, Lonavala. This action is part of the ongoing investigation into the Sahara Group's alleged money laundering activities. According to an official statement, the land was purchased under benami names with funds diverted from various Sahara Group entities, in violation of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002.
The investigation was initiated following the registration of three First Information Reports (FIRs) under sections 420 and 120B of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) against M/s Humara India Credit Co-operative Society Ltd. (HICCSL) and others by police in Odisha, Bihar, and Rajasthan. The ED's probe has also uncovered over 500 FIRs against Sahara Group entities, with more than 300 of these cases related to offences under the PMLA, 2002. These complaints allege that depositors were tricked into depositing funds, forced to redeposit them, and denied their maturity payments despite repeated requests.
Further investigation revealed that the Sahara Group was operating a Ponzi scheme using entities such as HICCSL, Sahara Credit Cooperative Society Limited (SCCSL), Sahara Housing Investment Corporation Ltd. (SHICL), and others. The group allegedly attracted depositors with promises of high returns and commissions, while misusing the collected funds without proper control or transparency. Instead of repaying depositors, Sahara forced them to reinvest their maturity amounts, masking the non-repayment issue by transferring deposits between schemes.
The ED's probe also uncovered that a portion of the collected money was siphoned off and diverted to create benami assets and fund the lavish lifestyles of the group’s executives. Some assets were sold off, with payments made in undisclosed cash, further depriving depositors of their rightful claims. During the investigation, the ED recorded statements from depositors, agents, and employees of the Sahara Group, and seized unexplained cash amounting to Rs 2.98 crore during searches conducted under Section 17 of PMLA.
