Oscar investors meet Odisha chit fund probe panel chief

Odisha Sun Times Bureau
Bhubaneswar, Aug 8:

Some duped investors and agents of Ponzi firm Oscar Group of Companies from Gujarat’s Bharuch district today met Justice M M Das Commission of Inquiry probing the chit fund scam in Odisha and demanded refund of their deposits.

These people also visited the Economic Offence Wing (EOW) of the Crime Branch and held discussions with officials there.

These duped investors and agents of the Ponzi firm had yesterday recorded their statements before the EOW and submitted documents pertaining to their investments with the firm.

Oscar Group of Companies has allegedly duped investors of over Rs 11 crore in Bharuch district alone by opening five branches.

Later, in the day these men visited the BJP state headquarters here and sought the party’s intervention in the matter.

“Investors from Gujarat have been alleging of being cheated by the Oscar Group since 2013 but no one is listening to them. Our Crime Branch went to Gujarat to investigate the fraud after the Ponzi firm sold all its plots and flats there. We assured them that the BJP has been fighting for the cause of duped depositors of chit fund firms and will continue to do so,” said Samir Mohanty, vice president of BJP state unit.

Notably, Oscar Group of Companies had first opened 58 branches in Gujarat. The company had cheated over Rs 150 crore from more than 13,000 investors. The Crime Branch has identified 19 plots and flats and various bank accounts of this firm in Gujarat.