How conman tricked Yogi Adityanath’s UP government with fake Data Centre scam
In what is now being described as one of the biggest multi-level marketing frauds in recent years, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has arrested Sukhvinder Singh Kharour, the CEO of Vuenow Group, and his wife, Dimple Kharour, for orchestrating a massive Ponzi scheme under the guise of cloud technology. The couple defrauded investors of ₹3,558 crore by selling what they called “cloud particles” and luring people into a scheme that promised high rental returns.
However, the scandal does not end at financial fraud. In a stunning revelation, it has come to light that the Yogi Adityanath-led Uttar Pradesh government had signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the conman’s company, advertising it as a grand project that would build the "biggest data centre network in the world." What was projected as a revolutionary tech investment for Uttar Pradesh turned out to be an elaborate scam, with thousands of crores siphoned off by the fraudsters.
On November 20, 2022, the Uttar Pradesh government, in the presence of then Chief Secretary Durga Shankar Mishra, signed an MoU with Vuenow Marketing Services Ltd (VMSL) to establish 750 edge data centres across all districts of the state. The project was widely promoted as a groundbreaking initiative that would position UP as a global leader in digital infrastructure, aiding advancements in 5G, blockchain, artificial intelligence, and big data analytics. The state government proudly announced that it was building the world’s largest data centre network, a claim that now stands completely discredited.
However, what was marketed as a high-tech initiative was, in reality, a front for an elaborate Ponzi scheme. Sukhvinder Singh Kharour had no real expertise in data centres or cloud storage. Instead, he and his associates manipulated investors by selling them non-existent "cloud particles" (essentially server storage space) and promised lucrative returns through a sale-and-lease-back model. Investors were told that these "cloud particles" would be leased to major tech firms and generate high rental incomes.
The entire scheme began to unravel when complaints started pouring in from investors who were not receiving their promised returns. The ED launched a probe into Vuenow in October 2024, suspecting money laundering activities. Investigations revealed that instead of investing the money in data centres, the fraudsters were using new investors’ money to pay off older investors, a classic hallmark of a Ponzi scheme. The company was also found to have been laundering funds through a network of shell companies.
On November 24, 2024, an FIR was filed at Sector-58 police station in Noida against Vuenow and its associated entities. ED officials then conducted searches at Vuenow’s premises in Sector-62, where the company operated from the eighth floor of IThum Tower. These raids revealed a shocking paper trail showing that despite the grand MoU with the UP government, no real infrastructure had ever been built.
As the investigation progressed, authorities issued lookout notices against Sukhvinder and Dimple, but the duo managed to escape. They went underground, reportedly taking refuge in Nepal to evade arrest. After months of tracking, intelligence agencies located them and forced them to return to India. The couple was arrested on February 28, 2025, at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport as they attempted to flee once again.
During the investigation, the ED seized assets worth hundreds of crores linked to the scam. In February, the agency attached ₹178.12 crore in properties in Punjab and confiscated 26 luxury vehicles, valued at over ₹80 crore, all purchased using money looted from investors.
Further scrutiny of Vuenow’s financial records revealed the staggering scale of the deception. The company had only 2,701 terabytes (TB) of actual storage capacity but had sold over 6.7 lakh cloud particles, vastly overstating its assets to lure investors. The fraudsters had also transferred huge sums abroad, instead of using them to build data centres.
The Yogi Adityanath government now finds itself in an embarrassing position. The much-touted MoU, which was supposed to be a game-changer for UP's digital infrastructure, has been exposed as a sham. The promise of a ₹13,500 crore investment in data centres was nothing more than a PR stunt that masked a massive financial fraud. The fact that the UP government publicly endorsed Vuenow without conducting due diligence raises serious questions about the state’s vetting process for investment projects.
The special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court in Jalandhar has remanded Dimple Kharour to five days of custody and Sukhvinder to ten days.
Authorities revealed that Vuenow and its subsidiaries, Zebyte Infotech Private Limited and Zebyte Rental Planet Private Limited, were involved in rotating investors’ money instead of generating actual revenue. As per officials, “The cloud sale and lease-back model was found to be non-existent, and proceeds of crime amounting to ₹3,558 crore were used for personal luxuries instead of business purposes.”
The investigation has also revealed that the fraud extended beyond Vuenow, with money being funneled into production companies controlled by Dimple Kharour, such as Avni IT Infra Ventures Ltd, Kharour Films LLP, and Fruitchaat Entertainment Pvt Ltd. None of these businesses had any connection to cloud computing, further proving that the entire enterprise was a front for siphoning money.
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Kasaragod: ED books Kunhahmed Musliyar Memorial Trust for FCRA violation
New Delhi (PTI): The Enforcement Directorate has registered a forex violation case against a Kerala-based charitable organisation for receiving Rs 220 crore from abroad in alleged violation of the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA).
The investigation pertains to Kunhahmed Musliyar Memorial Trust located in Kasargod and its chairman Ibrahim Ahmad Ali, an NRI.
Searches were conducted under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) at two locations in Kasargod on Thursday in connection with the case, the ED said in a statement.
The Trust, according to the ED, received more than Rs 220 crore since 2021 from Ibrahim Ahmad Ali, which was reflected in the books of accounts as "unsecured" loans.
However, no loan agreement, interest rate terms, or repayment schedule were available, and no repayment had been made till date, the probe agency said.
The probe found that these funds were received by Ali from a UAE company named Universal Lubricants LLC.
In the absence of supporting documents and in view of the clarification given under a section of the FCRA, the said loan prima facie qualified as "foreign contribution" under FCRA, the statement said.
According to the ED, the Trust is "not registered" under the FCRA and does not possess the "mandatory permission" or a designated FCRA bank account to receive foreign contributions.
It was found that a part of these foreign contributions was "utilised" for the purchase of agricultural land in India, in violation of the existing regulations.
The search action found that the Trust received Rs 2.49 crore in "cash" from Ali in violation of FEMA provisions.
"During the search, incriminating documents, ledger accounts showing unsecured loans of Rs 220 crore, the cash book of the Trust, and a hard disk containing financial data were seized," the ED said.
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