3 months ago
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The Supreme Court has sought a effect from the Governments of India and the State of Tamil Nadu successful a plea by depositors from T.N. for a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into an alleged Ponzi strategy tally by the Universal Trading Solutions Private Limited, a Coimbatore-based company.
Appearing earlier a Bench headed by the Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, a radical of depositors said determination were astir 73,000 of them who had mislaid their life-savings aggregating to astir ₹1,000 crore.
The petitioner-depositors, represented by advocates Mukund P. Unny and Sanjay Nair S., said 3 committees headed by retired High Court judges had been formed successful the past. Two of them were dissolved by the Madras High Court. The 3rd panel, chaired by erstwhile Madras High Court justice Justice M. Govindaraj, has not been capable to auction immoderate plus oregon instrumentality the magnitude owed to the beleaguered depositors for the past astir 3 years.
The depositors argued the Kerala High Court had transferred the cases registered successful that State to the CBI. Subsequently, the State of Kerala had granted consent to a CBI probe nether Section 6 of the Delhi Special Police Establishment Act. Whereas, connected the different hand, Tamil Nadu had remained contented with having the State Police probe the cases registered wrong its jurisdiction.
The petition said the lawsuit was investigated by the State Police’s Economic Offences Wing. It submitted that Universal Trading Solution Pvt. Ltd. and its managing manager G. Ramesh were facing probe nether the Banning of Unregulated Deposit Schemes Act of 2019, and the provisions of the Tamil Nadu Protection of Interests of Depositors Act, 1997.
Mr. Unny argued that the Central bureau should beryllium assigned the task of probe into an alleged scam which has multi-State ramifications. The probe should beryllium azygous and centralised, alternatively than being scattered, helium said.
“The continuation of a parallel State-level probe successful Tamil Nadu would pb to fragmented, inconsistent and ineffective prosecution… There has been a denial of the close to a just probe nether Article 21 work with Article 14 guaranteed nether the Constitution,” the Tamil Nadu depositors submitted.
They further urged the apex tribunal to nonstop the Justice Govindaraj Committee to expeditiously marque a database of depositors and the full assets, and merchantability the properties of Universal Trading Solution Pvt. Ltd. to disburse the proceeds to the depositors successful a time-bound mode wrong a play of six months.
The depositors said the tribunal indispensable see appointing 1 of the petitioners successful the lawsuit arsenic a typical of the depositors successful Tamil Nadu, to facilitate connection betwixt the victims and the Justice Govindaraj Committee.
The tribunal issued announcement to the CBI on with the Centre and the State of Tamil Nadu connected January 6. It listed the lawsuit for proceeding connected March 16, 2026.
The petitioners alleged they were victims of a “large-scale fiscal fraud” dispersed crossed confederate States, including Tamil Nadu and Kerala. They said depositors were assured 12% involvement per annum on with the 10% of main repaid.
“The depositors were promised that repayments would beryllium completed wrong 1 twelvemonth from the day of acceptance of deposits. However, by aboriginal 2019, Universal Trading Solution Pvt. Ltd. defaulted connected repayments. It soon became evident that the strategy was fraudulent successful quality and the deposits were siphoned disconnected and diverted for acquisition of immovable properties successful the names of Universal Trading Solution Pvt. Ltd., G. Ramesh and his household members… It is pertinent to enactment that galore depositors had invested their life-savings successful the strategy hoping for amended returns,” the petition submitted.
