Chit fund scam in Odisha: OPID court orders to confiscate properties linked to Artha Tatwa

Bhubaneswar: Odisha Protection of Interests of Depositors (OPID) court in Cuttack today ordered to confiscation of the properties associated with Artha Tatwa over the chit fund scam, which include 110 acre land, 11 luxury cars, and Rs 2.17 crore bank deposits.

An official source said that the OPID court also ordered to distribution of the amount of money recovered through confiscation among the victim depositors of Artha Tatwa.

The immovable assets (landed properties) to be confiscated are located in Bhubaneswar, Begunia, Tangi, Bhadrak, Balasore, Ganjam, Puri, and Angul. The movable and immovable assets will be confiscated over an alleged chit-fund scam to the tune of around Rs 600 crore.

“Finance Department had previously attached the properties of Artha Tatwa in connection with chit fund scam. The OPID court today ordered to auction the properties in public and to distribute the auctioned amount along with an available bank deposit of Rs 2.17 crore among the affected depositors,” the special public prosecutor (PP) said mediapersons.

The financial fraud was done by Artha Tatwa between 2009 and 2012. Chief of the chit fund company Pradeep Sethy was earlier arrested in connection with the scam and subsequently lodged in jail.