‘Ajit Pawar protected fraudulent firm’

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Lok Sabha member Dr Kirit Somaiya has alleged that Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Ajit Pawar protected ponzi scheme company Samruddha Jeevan which has branches in Maharashtra, Karnataka and Orissa. Last week, Osmanabad police arrested Samruddha chief Mahesh Motewar in connection with chit fund fraud. Dr Somaiya also blamed the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) for failure to take timely action against Samruddha Jeevan and Sai Prasad in December 2010.

Dr Somaiya blamed Mr Pawar for supporting Samruddha Jeevan and Motewar. “Mr Pawar inaugurated Motewar’s office in Pune and I warned him about it. Most of the money collection agents of Samruddha Jeevan are NCP party workers. I don’t mean to say that NCP has invested in Motewar’s company,” he said. While addressing the media on Friday, Dr Somaiya said that he had brought to the attention of then minister for home, late R.R. Patil, the fraudulent methods of Balasaheb Bhapkars Sai Prasad scheme way back in November 2012. However, action was taken against Sai Prasad only in December 2015, he added.

Dr Somaiya said that more than 200 small and medium schemes are still operating in the country and the total amount involved is Rs 4,00,000 crore, out of which Rs 2,00,000 crore alone is of ponzi schemes like Sai Prasad and Samruddha Jeevan.

Dr Somaiya said he was not against any journalist or employee of these ponzi companies. He claimed that despite SEBI having banned Samruddha Jeevan from raising funds in 2013, Mr Motewar raised '278 crore from farmers on behalf of Prosperity Agro, invested the money in private news television channels and used it to promote his ponzi schemes.

Dr Somaiya argued that under law, it was illegal for cooperative societies to raise money in such a manner and use the same to operate private news television channels. Giving a list of 193 ponzi companies, he said that out of these, 165 also operate in Maharashtra. Mr Pawar was not available for comment.