Accused in Rs 45,000 crore scam, Pearls Group owner Nirmal Singh Bhangoo dies; 5.5 crore investors still in lurch
Bhangoo, originally from Barnala in Punjab, sold milk in his youth and graduated in Political Science
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Nirmal Singh Bhangoo had amassed millions before he had to shut down due to income tax investigations in 1996. (photo from X)Pearls Group owner Nirmal Singh Bhangoo, who was accused of committing a Rs 45,000 crore scam and duping nearly 5.5 crore investors, passed away in a Delhi Hospital on Sunday after spending eight years in judicial custody.
Bhangoo, originally from Barnala in Punjab, sold milk in his youth and graduated in Political Science. In the 1970s, he moved to Kolkata and allegedly had his first experience of working in a chit-fund company. Before starting his own business in 1980, he joined a Haryana-based company involved in investor fraud.
Bhangoo’s company Pearls Golden Forest (PGF) had amassed millions before it was shut down due to income tax investigations in 1996.
Bhangoo then started Pearls Infrastructure Projects Limited, ARSS Infrastructure Projects Limited, and Jain Infra Projects Limited but this time the complaints reached the doorsteps of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
But by then Bhangoo had enlisted over 2.3 million commission agents, including more than 1,700 senior-level field officers, who were paid lakhs in monthly commissions for bringing in investors.
The Pearls Group was a major sponsor of the World Kabaddi Cup, organised by the Shiromani Akali Dal-led Punjab government in 2010, 2011, 2012, and 2013.
On February 19, 2014, the CBI registered a case against the then-chairman of Pearls Group, Nirmal Singh Bhangoo, and other directors or promoters and revealed that the Group had issued fake land allotment letters to deceive investors, collecting thousands of crores of rupees. Bhangoo was arrested in 2016.
Thereafter, the Supreme Court formed the R M Lodha panel to ensure that duped investors received their refunds by selling Pearls Group properties. According to the Lodha Panel’s website, investors who invested up to Rs 19,000 have been refunded so far.
Meanwhile, at a time when the Supreme Court was trying to compensate the victims, the Punjab Police revealed that despite the Court’s prohibition, properties worth Rs 1,200 crore were sold illegally by the Pearls Group. A significant portion of the money was also diverted through shell entities and invested in Australian companies, amounting to approximately AUD 132.99 million.
In September 2023, the Punjab Vigilance Bureau arrested Bhangoo’s wife, Prem Kaur, for her alleged involvement in the case. She was accused of diverting the Pearl Group’s assets and violating Supreme Court orders by nominating a close relative to transfer the properties for sale.
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