CBI files first charge sheet in Odisha chit fund scam; against Green India

Reported by Santosh Jagdev
Bhubaneswar, Dec 2:

More than six months after it started investigating the mega chit fund scam in Odisha, the CBI today filed the first charge sheet in the case against Green India Private Limited.

The 188-page charge sheet filed in the special CBI court here by investgating officer (IO) of the case SK Samal and CBI counsel KC Mishra charged three top executives of the company under various sections of the IPC and under section 456 of the Prize Chit and Money Circulation (Banning) Scheme Act, 1978. The charge sheet names nearly 300 persons as witnesses in the case.

Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Pradeep Singh and directors Sunil Panda and Jitendra Mishra were charged under sections 420 (cheating), 120 B (criminal conspiracy). 409 and 509 of the IPC, CBI sources said.

While the agency had raided the residences of Singh and Panda in Berhampur on August 7 this year, Mishra, who was arrested by the state police earlier, is now out on bail. The CBI had seized a stack of incriminating documents showing the company’s dubious operations besides Rs 10 lakh in cash during the raid, which was among the earliest raids in the case.

The charge sheet, filed just a day before the expiry of the mandatory 120-day period, has charged the company with defraudiing the public of at least Rs 30 crore through its four subsidiaries: Green India Properties Pvt Ltd, Green India Infra Projects Pvt Ltd, Green India Retail Pvt Ltd and Green India Multi-state Cooperative Pvt Ltd.

CBI sources, however, clarified that it was only a preliminary charge sheet and a supplementary charge sheet would be filed later after investigations are complete. The total amount involved could go upwards of Rs 100 crore, they said.

Meawhile, the district and sessions court here completed hearing on the bail plea of senior BJD leader and Banki MLA Pravat Tripathy and reserved the verdict for December 8.