WB chit fund scam: Top aides of 2 Left leaders quizzed Kolkata: The probe in the West Bengal chit fund case has widened its ambit to the previous Left government. On Wednesday, the police questioned the top aides of two former Left ministers. Sources said that the police questioned Anjan Bhattacharya, the assistant of former Housing Minister Gautam Deb and Ganesh Dey, the CA of former Finance Minister Asim Dasgupta. Sources said that the police were looking if illegal pay-offs were...  
07:54 PM, May 01, 2013

West Bengal chit fund scam: Mamata to hold rallies Kolkata: Seeking to prevent the opposition from cashing in on the Saradha chitfund scam, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee will hit the streets on Thursday to shift the blame to her predecessors and project the action taken by her government against the 'legacy' of '70s and '80s. "The chitfunds are a legacy of Bengal from the 70's and 80's. For all these years, CPI(M) and Congress turned the other...  
06:58 PM, May 01, 2013

WB chit fund scam: Police call tea trading firm owner for questioning Kolkata: The Bidhannagar Police on Tuesday called tea trading firm owner Sajan Agarwal for questioning in the West Bengal chit fund scam case. Saradha chief Sudipta Sen had named Agarwal as the conduit through which key players in Delhi were paid off. Meanwhile, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday started sealing offices of two chit fund companies in Entally, Dalhousie and Behala areas of Kolkata. She had said in the...  
11:20 PM, Apr 30, 2013

WB Assembly passes bill to regulate chit fund companies Kolkata: In a fallout of the Saradha chit fund scam in West Bengal, the state Assembly on Tuesday passed a new bill on protecting investor interests in chit fund companies. The Bill was passed with minor amendments in a special session of the Assembly. However, there was no amendment in the most controversial portions of the Bill, namely the definition of Competent Authority (clause 8) and Section 22 (2) which...  
06:03 PM, Apr 30, 2013

Under pressure over the chit fund scam, WB to enact new law Kolkata: Under massive pressure over the chit fund scam, West Bengal will on Tuesday enact a new law to deal with companies that take public deposits. But it is based on an old draft that has been withdrawn and its critics say it will do more harm than good. The draft circulated among West Bengal's lawmakers on Saturday shows it to be more or less a copy of an old...  
10:20 AM, Apr 30, 2013

WB chit fund scam: Police question TMC MP Kunal Ghosh Kolkata: The police questioned Trinamool Congress MP Kunal Ghosh for 90 minutes regarding his involvement in the multi-crore West Bengal chit fund scam on Monday. Sources say Ghosh was asked about his position in the company, his deal with Saradha Group promoter Sudipta Sen on Channel 10 and whether he had anything to do with the financial aspect of the company. Police sources say all those from Bengal who have...  
09:45 AM, Apr 30, 2013

Mamata's nephew to sue CPI-M leader for chit fund allegation
by IANS
Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's nephew Abhishek Banerjee would sue senior CPI-M leader Gautam Deb for alleging that he has amassed fortune worth Rs 300 crore and was into the chit fund business, the Trinamool Congress said on Monday. A day after Deb made the claims at a Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) rally by naming Banerjee's company Leaps and Bounds, the Trinamool termed the allegations as "slanderous...  
10:50 PM, Apr 29, 2013

WB chit fund scam: Noose tightens around accused Kolkata: The West Bengal Police investigation into the Saradha chit fund fraud gathered steam on Monday as it summoned Trinamool Congress MP Kunal Ghosh for questioning over his role in the scam. Ghosh, however, denied all the charges saying it was a conspiracy against him. "Lies are being concocted and spread against me. I have come here to record a statement for the investigation being conducted by the police. I...  
07:32 PM, Apr 29, 2013

WB chit fund scam: Police summon TMC MP Kunal Ghosh Kolkata: The Trinamool Congress MP, Kunal Ghosh was on Monday summoned by the Bidhannagar Police for interrogation over the multicrore Saradha chit fund scam. Saradha group promoter Sudipta Sen and his aide Debjani Mukherjee had alleged that Kunal Ghosh had played a role in the fraud. Ghosh, however, denied all the charges against him, alleging it was a conspiracy. "Lies are being spread about me. The probe will bring out...  
06:05 PM, Apr 29, 2013

Chit fund scam: Sudipta swindled 2500 employees of PF money Kolkata: Sudipta Sen, Saradha group chairman accused of duping lakhs of investors, has allegedly swindled 2500 of his employees of their provident fund money, according to sources. Sources said that the amount never got deposited in their respective PF accounts. A team of ED officials from Kolkata have started looking at the financial trail and the use of money. ED officials are also looking into Sudipta Sen's bank accounts, sources...  
05:46 PM, Apr 29, 2013

WB: Cong workers go on a rampage, demand Kunal Ghosh's arrest Kolkata: Congress workers on Monday went on a rampage over the West Bengal chit fund scam in Kolkata. They took to the streets in Kolkata demanding a CBI probe and the arrest of Trinamool Congress MP Kunal Ghosh. The protesters burned effigies, broke barricades and also clashed with the police. Some of the protesters were taken into custody by the police. Meanwhile, day one of the special Assembly session was...  
03:48 PM, Apr 29, 2013

WB Assembly adjourned till tomorrow after obituary reference Kolkata: Day one of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's Assembly test has been deferred. The West Bengal Assembly has been adjourned for the day after an obituary reference. A special 2-day session had been called by Governor MK Narayanan to discuss the chit fund scam. It has not just wiped away crores of investor money but also put several TMC and Congress ministers under scrutiny. The government is hoping...  
12:23 PM, Apr 29, 2013

WB Assembly's special session on chit fund scam to begin today Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is getting ready to face the Opposition fire in the state Assembly. A special 2-day session has been called by Governor MK Narayanan from Monday to discuss the chit fund scam in the state. It has not just wiped away crores of investor money but also dragged the Trinamool Congress and Congress ministers into the mess. The scam is also getting bigger with...  
10:44 AM, Apr 29, 2013

WB chit fund scam: CPM points finger at Mamata's nephew Kolkata: Demanding CBI inquiry into Saradha Group chit fund scam, CPI(M) on Sunday accused West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's nephew of being involved in ponzi schemes and said she should come clean on the issue. "Mamata Banerjee's nephew Abhishek Banerjee, who is the leader of Trinamool Congress Yuva, runs a company which is involved in real estate and micro-finance and has made a huge amount of money in the...  
09:20 PM, Apr 28, 2013

Panel objects delays in auction of coal blocks New Delhi: A parliamentary panel has criticised the government for undue delays in allotment of coal mines through auction route amid dry-fuel crunch faced by the country. "The Committee cannot but deplore these prolonged consultations delaying the allocation through bidding system and strongly recommend the government to complete the process of consultation without any further delay to ensure early allocation of identified coal blocks through competitive bidding process to boost...  
01:20 PM, Apr 28, 2013

Chit fund scam: Mamata to bring in law against defaulting cos Kolkata: In the wake of the collapse of the Saradha Group, an under pressure Mamata Banerjee is all set to bring a new law that allows takeover of chit fund companies and confiscation of properties. The opposition though has slammed the move saying the Bill has nothing new. This comes even as another investor committed suicide in Purulia. The draft of the new Bill that was circulated among West Bengal's...  
07:53 AM, Apr 28, 2013

WB chit fund scam: One more investor commits suicide Kolkata: One more investor, who had deposited money in chit fund company Saradha Group, on Saturday committed suicide. Tapan Biswas, a resident of Purulia, allegedly hanged himself. Tapan had invested Rs 4 lakh with the chit fund company. He was reportedly depressed after Saradha went bust. This is the fourth suicide, including three investor and one agent, after the chit fund company Saradha had gone bust. Meanwhile, the West Bengal...  
04:41 PM, Apr 27, 2013

Full text: TMC MP Kunal Ghosh's letter to Mamata Banerjee Trinamool Congress Rajya Sabha MP Kunal Ghosh, one of the two accused of blackmailing Saradha group promoter Sudipta Sen, has offered to resign if he is told to do so. He also wrote a letter (in Bengali) to West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee that has been displayed on the party website. Following is the English translation of the letter: To Mamata Banerjee, All India Trinamool Congress Respected leader, I...  
01:55 PM, Apr 27, 2013

WB: Kunal Ghosh writes to Mamata, offers to quit if proven guilty Kolkata: The West Bengal chit fund disaster is continuing to embarrass the ruling Trinamool Congress government. But the party is trying to minimise the damage by trying to distance itself from the mess. Trinamool Rajya Sabha MP Kunal Ghosh, one of the two accused of blackmailing Saradha group promoter Sudipta Sen, has offered to resign if he is told to do so. He also wrote a letter (in Bengali) to...  
12:25 PM, Apr 27, 2013

WB chit fund scam: TMC MP Kunal Ghosh offers to quit Kolkata: Trinamool Congress MP Kunal Ghosh on Friday offered to resign from Rajya Sabha if charges against him in the West Bengal chit fund scam were proved. In a letter to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, Ghosh wrote, "If it's proved that I am related to the money market schemes of Saradha, I am willing to resign from Rajya Sabha." Kunal Ghosh's name cropped up in the scam after a letter...  
09:50 PM, Apr 26, 2013