Cabinet nod to Rs 500-cr kitty for Saradha losers

The Rs 500-crore fund would be made available with the Justice Shyamal Sen Commission,set up by the state government to probe the Saradha scam and work out ways to compensate the depositors who lost money in the scandal.

According to officials of the finance department,the state government also plans to implement the guidelines outlined by the Calcutta High Court in its June 19 verdict to return the money while disallowing a CBI probe into the scam.

The Division Bench comprising Justices A K Banerjee and M K Chaudhury said the state government should increase the terms of reference of the commission so that it could settle the claims of the investors itself.

“While around Rs 200 crore will be raised from tax revenue from cigarettes,the commission,on the strength of the guidelines,would be able to sell properties of Saradha Group and collect funds,’’ an official of the finance department told The Indian Express.

So far,the commission has received 17.39 lakh applications from investors with most of them having deposited Rs 10,000 or less.

The state government today also appointed Debkumar Chakrabarty,secretary,finance,to the post of principal secretary of the Shyamal Sen Commission,to facilitate quick return of the money.

Mamata is learnt to have told her private circles that she would ensure that the investors get at least a small part of their investments before Durga Puja that starts October 10.

The Commission is expected to submit an interim report before the Durga Puja.