Assam ajrs ponzi scam: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has filed a final charge sheet against Gopal Paul, the mastermind of the famous AJRS Ponji scam in Assam, in Guwahati. This charge sheet has been filed within 90 days of arrest. At present, Gopal Paul is in judicial custody.
The CBI registered this case on 14 October 2024 at the request of the Assam government. Earlier, this case was registered on 12 August 2024 at Dispur police station in Guwahati. It was alleged that M/S Ajrs Marketing Pvt. Ltd. (Whose director was Gopal Paul) was trading illegally, while it had no approval from the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).
There were reports of cheating the public in Assam with many fake trading apps and Ponzi Schemes. Through these schemes, people were lured for high returns (profits), but later crores of rupees were embezzled.
How did the scam happen?
CBI investigation revealed that Gopal Paul, along with his colleagues Bishwanath Roy and Mridul Dutta, hatched a big conspiracy. He made M/s ajrs marketing Pvt. Ltd., M/S Ajrs Management Securities (OPC) PVT. Ltd. And made companies like Gspaul Marketing LLP.
These companies launched themselves in the market by brand names like Ayurvedlife and Ajstrading and claimed that they sell Ayurvedic products such as oil, cream and aloe vera based items but investigation revealed that all this was fake. The real objective of these companies was to collect money from the public and cheat.
Websites like www.ayurvedlife.org and www.ayurvedlife.in were run to woo people. Investigation revealed that Gopal Paul and his associates cheated about ₹ 5.14 crore through this scam.
Gopal Paul’s arrest and lawsuit
According to the investigating agency, Gopal Paul escaped after the people were stunned. He was arrested by the CBI on 12 November 2024 from Siliguri in West Bengal. Earlier, a charge sheet has also been filed against Bishwanath Roy and Mridul Dutta, and they are facing trials.
Which crimes were registered?
The CBI has made serious allegations against Gopal Paul and his companies under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Buds Act, 2019-
Fraud and Conspiracy: Section 120B (Criminal conspiracy), 409 (criminal betrayal) and 420 (fraud)
Beniums Deposit Scheme Ban Act (BUDS Act, 2019): Section 25, 21 (1), 21 (2), 21 (3) and 23
This scam is considered to be one of the biggest scams related to the Ponzi scheme in Assam. The investigation is on and the CBI may also tighten the grip on other accused.
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