Saradha Scam – the Sordid Saga
September 22, 2014
The Saradha scam has all the ingredients of a Hollywood pot-boiler. The Rs 20,000-crore scam that has rocked West Bengal for about last one year now has many skeletons tumbling out of the closet.
Interrogations of top rival politicians in two states (Bengal and Assam) including film director-turned politician Aparna Sen; interrogation of the lawyer wife of former union Finance Minister P Chidambaram; arrest of a ruling party’s Rajya Sabha Member as well as of a retired West Bengal Director General of Police and an Assamese singer; suicide by a former Assam Director General Police for his alleged involvement; suicides by the investors as well as agents of the fraudulent company (the company had over 3 lakh agents who now fear for their lives from angry investors) ; litigations; demonstrations; and political bickering!
Sudipto … Debjani … Scheming Scamsters
Add to them the slippery character of Sudipto Sen – the low profiled founder of Saradha, that many suspect to have undergone plastic surgeries to hide his true identity (he now threatens to commit suicide!), and his female acquaintance and partner in crime, Debjani Mukhopadhyay, and it indeed sounds to be a true chartbuster!
Yet, it is a sordid fact that the story of Saradha involves real villains and millions of real-life tragic characters, robbed of their respect and dignity! The tricksters did not even spare Saradha Devi, wife of revered Ramakrishan Paramhans and regarded by Bengalis as the ‘Holy Mother’, as they named the fraud company “Saradha” ostensibly to exploit its emotional value.
Sudipto and Debjani were arrested from a Kashmir resort a few months after the scam broke out. There is no trace of the money that they accumulated by duping the poor, ignorant people who blindly invested in their chit funds in hope of turning rich overnight.
Despite his public low profile, Sudipto, who started as a small time builder in Kolkata, had made it really big through his alleged fraudulent ways. He set up Saradha in 2006-07 and soon it emerged as one of the largest chit fund companies in eastern India and diversified into construction, hospitality, agri-businesses and media.
September 22, 2014
The Saradha scam has all the ingredients of a Hollywood pot-boiler. The Rs 20,000-crore scam that has rocked West Bengal for about last one year now has many skeletons tumbling out of the closet.
Interrogations of top rival politicians in two states (Bengal and Assam) including film director-turned politician Aparna Sen; interrogation of the lawyer wife of former union Finance Minister P Chidambaram; arrest of a ruling party’s Rajya Sabha Member as well as of a retired West Bengal Director General of Police and an Assamese singer; suicide by a former Assam Director General Police for his alleged involvement; suicides by the investors as well as agents of the fraudulent company (the company had over 3 lakh agents who now fear for their lives from angry investors) ; litigations; demonstrations; and political bickering!
Sudipto … Debjani … Scheming Scamsters
Add to them the slippery character of Sudipto Sen – the low profiled founder of Saradha, that many suspect to have undergone plastic surgeries to hide his true identity (he now threatens to commit suicide!), and his female acquaintance and partner in crime, Debjani Mukhopadhyay, and it indeed sounds to be a true chartbuster!
Yet, it is a sordid fact that the story of Saradha involves real villains and millions of real-life tragic characters, robbed of their respect and dignity! The tricksters did not even spare Saradha Devi, wife of revered Ramakrishan Paramhans and regarded by Bengalis as the ‘Holy Mother’, as they named the fraud company “Saradha” ostensibly to exploit its emotional value.
Sudipto and Debjani were arrested from a Kashmir resort a few months after the scam broke out. There is no trace of the money that they accumulated by duping the poor, ignorant people who blindly invested in their chit funds in hope of turning rich overnight.
Despite his public low profile, Sudipto, who started as a small time builder in Kolkata, had made it really big through his alleged fraudulent ways. He set up Saradha in 2006-07 and soon it emerged as one of the largest chit fund companies in eastern India and diversified into construction, hospitality, agri-businesses and media.
Widespread Involvement of the High and Mighty in Saradha Scam
The one underlying aspect of Sudipto’s fraud is, indeed, the unholy nexus between the high and mighty – the politicians, bureaucrats, police and crony capitalist. Wasn’t it desirable for Sudipto, therefore, to despatch, when his arrest looked imminent, an 18-page note to the CBI listing 22 people’s names including two Trinamool Congress MPs – Kunal Ghosh and Srinjoy Bose, who he charged, among other things, of “using” him to make money?
These charges have ostensibly put the maverick West Bengal Chief Minister on backfoot. Mamata Benerjee’s own people in the ruling Trinamool Congress are raising fingers at her over the issue and expectedly the BJP, so keen to make inroads in the state, has grabbed the opportunity to target her.
Already four of Mamata’s party MPs have been questioned by the Central Bureau of Investigation and the Enforcement Directorate in connection with the scam. She further faces the heat from her suspended Rajya Sabha MP Kunal Ghosh – who headed Saradha’s media division and was remanded to judicial custody early this month. He has conformed to what Sudipto wrote in his note, and has claimed involvement of his party colleague in the Rajya Sabha and local media baron, Srinjoy Bose and his father as well as Mamata’s Transport Minister Madan Mitra, who had allegedly been the president of several Saradha Group Companies’ employee unions, in the scam.
The one underlying aspect of Sudipto’s fraud is, indeed, the unholy nexus between the high and mighty – the politicians, bureaucrats, police and crony capitalist. Wasn’t it desirable for Sudipto, therefore, to despatch, when his arrest looked imminent, an 18-page note to the CBI listing 22 people’s names including two Trinamool Congress MPs – Kunal Ghosh and Srinjoy Bose, who he charged, among other things, of “using” him to make money?
These charges have ostensibly put the maverick West Bengal Chief Minister on backfoot. Mamata Benerjee’s own people in the ruling Trinamool Congress are raising fingers at her over the issue and expectedly the BJP, so keen to make inroads in the state, has grabbed the opportunity to target her.
Already four of Mamata’s party MPs have been questioned by the Central Bureau of Investigation and the Enforcement Directorate in connection with the scam. She further faces the heat from her suspended Rajya Sabha MP Kunal Ghosh – who headed Saradha’s media division and was remanded to judicial custody early this month. He has conformed to what Sudipto wrote in his note, and has claimed involvement of his party colleague in the Rajya Sabha and local media baron, Srinjoy Bose and his father as well as Mamata’s Transport Minister Madan Mitra, who had allegedly been the president of several Saradha Group Companies’ employee unions, in the scam.
Mamata Banerjee under the Dock
Such developments do not augur well for Mamata. Yet, more than the political aspects, the spectre of the scam seems to be haunting her mainly because it has acquired a much larger social dimension.
Can Mamata overlook the plight of about 17 lakh poor people who were duped by the Saradha group? There are many who committed suicides – investors and agents alike. They fell prey to Sutipto’s sinister designs – In September 2014, a Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO) probe into 14 companies of the Saradha Group found evidence of violation of several provisions of the Indian Penal Code including abetment of crime, criminal conspiracy, dishonest misappropriation of property, criminal breach of trust by public servants, cheating and falsification of accounts.
It may be mentioned that chit fund is a legitimate business and is regulated as per the Chit Funds Act, 1982. Yet, over a period of time, the business earned notoriety because of growing instances of chit-fund related frauds particularly in villages and small towns wherein little-educated small investors have regularly been duped by fly-by-night operators.
Such developments do not augur well for Mamata. Yet, more than the political aspects, the spectre of the scam seems to be haunting her mainly because it has acquired a much larger social dimension.
Can Mamata overlook the plight of about 17 lakh poor people who were duped by the Saradha group? There are many who committed suicides – investors and agents alike. They fell prey to Sutipto’s sinister designs – In September 2014, a Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO) probe into 14 companies of the Saradha Group found evidence of violation of several provisions of the Indian Penal Code including abetment of crime, criminal conspiracy, dishonest misappropriation of property, criminal breach of trust by public servants, cheating and falsification of accounts.
It may be mentioned that chit fund is a legitimate business and is regulated as per the Chit Funds Act, 1982. Yet, over a period of time, the business earned notoriety because of growing instances of chit-fund related frauds particularly in villages and small towns wherein little-educated small investors have regularly been duped by fly-by-night operators.
Colossal Dimensions of Saradha Scam
It is quite interesting how people now relate Saradha’s founder Sudipto to Bhudeb Sen – a mastermind of yet another chit fund scam – the Sanchayani scam– that rocked the state in the nineties. Sudipto is now being rumoured to be the missing son of Bhudeb who has changed his identity by going under the knife! Yet another story says that he actually was the naxal leader Shankaraditya Sen who had turned a land shark and went missing in the 1970s!
Folk lores and conjectures apart, the fact remains that none of the chit fund scams in the state could match the Saradha scam both in terms of money and involvement of the influential VIPs.
The entire episode now snowballs into an issue being used to settle political scores.
The Congress points out that in April 2012 itself, the then party leader and union minister of state for health Abu Hasem Khan Chowdhury had written to the then Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, alleging that chit funds were financing the Trinamool Congress! BJP President Amit Shah, too now suggests Mamata’s involvement in the scam.
Obviously, the West Bengal CM is pushed to a corner on the issue. But as it goes, Caeser’s wife must be above suspicion. So must Mamata Banerjee. After all, she has been hailed as the “best” chief minister of the country by none other than the anti-corruption crusader Anna Hazare!
It is quite interesting how people now relate Saradha’s founder Sudipto to Bhudeb Sen – a mastermind of yet another chit fund scam – the Sanchayani scam– that rocked the state in the nineties. Sudipto is now being rumoured to be the missing son of Bhudeb who has changed his identity by going under the knife! Yet another story says that he actually was the naxal leader Shankaraditya Sen who had turned a land shark and went missing in the 1970s!
Folk lores and conjectures apart, the fact remains that none of the chit fund scams in the state could match the Saradha scam both in terms of money and involvement of the influential VIPs.
The entire episode now snowballs into an issue being used to settle political scores.
The Congress points out that in April 2012 itself, the then party leader and union minister of state for health Abu Hasem Khan Chowdhury had written to the then Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, alleging that chit funds were financing the Trinamool Congress! BJP President Amit Shah, too now suggests Mamata’s involvement in the scam.
Obviously, the West Bengal CM is pushed to a corner on the issue. But as it goes, Caeser’s wife must be above suspicion. So must Mamata Banerjee. After all, she has been hailed as the “best” chief minister of the country by none other than the anti-corruption crusader Anna Hazare!
Obviously, the West Bengal CM is pushed to a corner on the issue. But as it goes, Caeser’s wife must be above suspicion. So must Mamata Banerjee. After all, she has been hailed as the “best” chief minister of the country by none other than the anti-corruption crusader Anna Hazare!
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