The long-discussed financial fraud case involving the chit fund company Pragatishil Infra Projects and Services Limited has concluded with a major breakthrough. On Saturday, a special CBI court in Agartala convicted three top officials of the firm including Arindam Das (Chairman), Deepshikha Chakraborty (Das) and Paritosh Das (Managing Director).
The court sentenced them to rigorous imprisonment and imposed hefty financial penalties. According to allegations, these individuals absconded after embezzling between 6 to 9 crore rupees collected from ordinary citizens.
To safeguard the interests of investors, the special CBI court attached assets worth over 1.5 crore rupees belonging to the company. The remaining balance is yet to be recovered. Notably, this marks the first instance where a special CBI court in Tripura has sentenced top executives of a chit fund company to prison.
Sources said that the case dates back to 2010 when the operations of Pragatashil Projects and Services Limited came under scrutiny. The accused began their business in 2009 in Kailashahar. Gradually, they expanded their footprint across Tripura, setting up nearly 15 branch offices in locations like Agartala, Santirbazar, Teliamura, and districts like Dhalai.
Initially, investors received their returns regularly. However, from 2011 onward, the company failed to return matured funds despite public demand. It is estimated that they collected around 5.5 crore rupees from ordinary citizens across the state. Apart from Agartala, Kailashahar, and Santirbazar, they also extracted money from residents of the Barak Valley region in Assam.
Before shutting down their operations, the accused reportedly set up another chit fund front under the name "Kama India" to defraud more investors, which was also later closed down. Subsequently, affected depositors filed a cheating case against Chairman Arindam Das, Deepshikha Chakraborty Das, and Managing Director Paritosh Das.
While the state police initially investigated the case, it was later handed over to the central investigating agency, the CBI. Following an extensive investigation, the CBI submitted its charge sheet to the court.
Based on the testimonies of seven witnesses during the trial, the court found the Chairman, Deepshikha Chakraborty Das, and Managing Director Paritosh Das are guilty. On Saturday, the court convicted them under sections 120B (Criminal Conspiracy) and 420 (Cheating) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), alongside Section 3 of the Tripura Protection of Interests of Depositors (in Financial Establishments) Act, 2000.
The court sentenced Arindam Das, Deepshikha Chakraborty Das, and Paritosh Das to 5 years of rigorous imprisonment along with a fine of 1 lakh rupees each. Failure to pay the fine will attract an additional year of imprisonment.
Furthermore, under the depositors' protection law, each was sentenced to 6 years of rigorous imprisonment and an additional fine of 1 lakh rupees.
The court specified that all sentences will run concurrently, meaning the convicts will serve a maximum total of 6 years in prison.
Additionally, a total fine of 5 lakh rupees was slapped on the accused organization, Pragatashil Infra Projects and Services Limited. If the fine is not paid within the stipulated timeframe, the court has directed authorities to recover the amount by seizing and liquidating the company’s assets under Section 421 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC). This recovered money is ordered to be returned to the depositors.
Legal professionals are hailing this verdict as a major milestone among the state’s ongoing chit-fund scam cases. It brings a ray of hope to hundreds of depositors who have been waiting anxiously for years to recover their hard-earned money.