Probe Agency Files Prosecution Complaint In Sahara Group Money Laundering Case

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) filed a prosecution complaint earleir this month under Section 44 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) in connection with the Sahara Group case.

The complaint comes within 60 days of the arrest of Jitendra Prasad Verma and Anil Vilaparampil Abraham, who have now been named as accused along with other individuals and entities.

The ED investigation has revealed that several properties of the Sahara Group, acquired through deposits collected from the public, were being secretly disposed of through massive cash transactions. According to the agency, Mr Abraham and Mr Verma played a key role in facilitating, coordinating and executing such transactions in collusion with others.

Earlier, on the directions of the Supreme Court in the Sahara-SEBI matter, Sahara Group had deposited around Rs 16,138 crore in the Sahara-SEBI refund account as of March 31. From this, Rs 5,000 crore was allocated to the Central Registrar of Cooperative Societies (CRCS) under the Ministry of Cooperation to refund depositors of Sahara's cooperative societies. Since July 2023, CRCS has disbursed Rs 2,314 crore to nearly 13 lakh depositors, while Sahara expedited processing of claims, enabling refunds of over Rs 5,000 crore to more than 27 lakh depositors by July 2025.

On September 12, the Supreme Court further permitted a fresh disbursal of another Rs 5,000 crore to CRCS from the Sahara-SEBI account. The ED's investigation supported the CRCS claim before the top court, paving the way for additional refunds. Efforts are also underway for refunding the remaining Rs 19,533 crore lying in the Sahara-SEBI account to eligible depositors.

The money laundering probe stems from multiple FIRs registered under Sections 420 and 120B of the IPC against Sahara entities, including Humara India Credit Cooperative Society Ltd. Over 500 FIRs have been lodged across states, with more than 300 involving scheduled offences under PMLA. The ED alleges Sahara Group was running a Ponzi scheme, manipulating accounts, forcing redeposits, denying maturity payments, and siphoning depositor money to create benami assets and fund personal use.

So far, the agency has issued four Provisional Attachment Orders, attaching benami lands of the Sahara Group and assets of others. Both Mr Abraham and Mr Verma remain in judicial custody.

The ED confirmed that further investigation into the role of senior Sahara officials, connected individuals, and cross-border transactions linked to money laundering is still in progress.