CBI court sentenced 3 Ponzi firm executives to 6 yrs imprisonment in TripuraAgartala: A special CBI court in Tripura’s Unakoti district sentenced three executives of Pragatishil Infra Project Services Pvt Ltd, a Ponzi firm operating as a chit fund company, to six years of rigorous imprisonment for defrauding depositors of crores of rupees.CBI judge Debasish Kar also directed the district magistrate (DM) to seize the company’s assets to compensate victims.The firm began operations in Unakoti in 2009, collecting deposits by promising attractive maturity returns. By late 2012, it stopped paying depositors even after investments matured, triggering complaints and an FIR at Kailashar police station.After investigation, the CBI filed charges against Arindam Das (Chairman and Managing Director), Deepsikha Das (Administrative Director), and Paritosh Das (Managing Director).Special CBI public prosecutor Prasenjit Saha told reporters the court held the three guilty of embezzling about Rs 5.50 crore from more than 800 depositors, citing trial evidence of misappropriation.The court convicted and sentenced them under the Tripura Protection of Interests of Depositors (in Financial Establishments) Act, 2000, and ordered attachment of company properties for reimbursement of depositors.The ruling is the first in Tripura in which a CBI court has imposed rigorous imprisonment in a chit fund scam case, amid repeated instances of fraudulent financial schemes in the state, including cases linked to Rose Valley.
