I am a victim of chit fund scam too: Odisha CM Mohan Majhi
Bhubaneswar, Dec 24: Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi on Tuesday claimed that he was also a victim of chit fund scams and urged people to be aware of the activities of ponzi firms to save their hard-earned money.
Majhi said this while addressing a function to celebrate the State Level National Consumers Day here. "I was also a victim of chit fund scams. Two firms had duped me in 1990 and 2002," the chief minister said, adding that he could not get back his money as the process of recovering the money was too cumbersome and too lengthy.
Claiming that he lost the investment in two ponzi firms, the chief minister said he was influenced by the sweet talks made by the firm agents and arranged money to deposit in certain schemes. "However, when the maturity period came, I could not find the companies where money was deposited," he said.
The chief minister said there has been a lot of change now as the Centre has formulated and strengthened regulations to stop cheating and duping of consumers.
The CM praised the BJP-led central government for amending the Chit Funds Act, 1982, in 2019, to ensure transparency in chit fund schemes. He mentioned that the amended legislation addressed the loopholes in the previous Act.
In Odisha, around 70 lakh people were allegedly duped by ponzi firms. Following a Supreme Court order in May 2014, the CBI investigated at least 44 companies, including Kolkata-based Saradha Group and Odisha-based Seashore and Artha Tatwa groups. These ponzi firms reportedly collected around Rs 4,600 crore from people in the state over four years.
Before the 2014 general elections, the then BJD government led by Naveen Patnaik formed a commission and set up a Rs 300 crore corpus fund to refund the duped small depositors. The commission, headed by Justice MM Das, identified around 1 lakh small depositors who lost Rs 10,000 or less.
In response to a written question in the Assembly, Majhi informed that around 2 lakh small investors had already received their money back.
Jayant Das, convenor of the Odisha Khytigratha Jamakari Milita Manch, criticised the state government for not taking measures to refund money to depositors duped by different ponzi firms, despite the ruling BJP’s election promise to refund the chit fund-affected people within 18 months.
However, Housing and Urban Development Minister KC Mohapatra assured that the BJP government would keep its promise and that the depositors would get their money back in the coming days.
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Akhilesh Yadav questions BJP government's preparedness for Mahakumbh, offers help
Lucknow (UP) (PTI): Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Wednesday questioned the Uttar Pradesh government's preparedness for the upcoming Mahakumbh and accused it of mismanagement.
In a social media post, the opposition leader flagged several issues regarding security arrangements, local concerns and overall administration in Prayagraj, urging the government to take immediate corrective action.
"This is the truth of preparations for 'Prayagraj Mahakumbh 2025' under the BJP government! At least the work of the police department should have been completed long ago because the management of the security circle does not wait for the last day," he said on X.
The former chief minister of the state also drew attention to the alleged delay in addressing the needs of local residents and the fair area, stating that people in Prayagraj were questioning the government's priorities.
"The aggrieved people of Prayagraj are asking that the BJP government was very prompt in removing the statue of 'Mahadani' Emperor Harshvardhan, but why is the same speed not being shown for administrative management?"
Yadav highlighted complaints about the "neglect" of local issues, such as transportation and movement around the Mahakumbh area.
"Alternative arrangements should also be made to address the concerns of the residents of Prayagraj about movement and transportation in case of an emergency," he added.
While expressing his party's support for the successful conduct of the Mahakumbh, Yadav emphasised that the local administration must act swiftly to address these gaps. "We want the Mahakumbh to go on and Prayagraj to also remain dynamic."
The SP president said his party is ready to assist the government as the "BJP people would be "busy earning money or in election planning".
"If the government-administration has failed in the preparations for the Mahakumbh, then we propose to send our true and dedicated workers to help because the BJP people would be busy earning money or in election planning," he said in a dig at the ruling party.
