‘Confidence of Alexander, heart of immorality’: Allahabad High Court refuses to quash Rs 42 lakh Ponzi scam case

Rs 42 lakh investment

• As per the FIR, the informant was introduced to the petitioner in October 2022 at a hotel in Mirzapur, where he was allegedly persuaded to invest in a company said to be engaged in mutual funds and promising exceptionally high returns.
• The informant claimed he was assured that the investment was secure, profits could be as high as 100 per cent, and that money could be returned on demand.
• Acting on these representations, he initially invested Rs 42 lakh.
• The complaint further alleged that some returns were paid initially, but when payments stopped and the informant sought his money back, the petitioner assured that the company had invested the amount in cryptocurrency.
• Soon profits amounting to four times the deposit would be returned to the investors, the petitioner allegedly claimed.

‘Accused vanishes’

According to the prosecution’s case, the accused and company representatives became unreachable soon after, their phones were switched off, and their websites disappeared, leading to allegations of cheating.

The counsel for the petitioner argued that the matter was a business transaction involving investment risk and that there was no element of cheating.

The informant opposed the plea, contending that the company had collected money from the public under false pretences and cheated numerous investors. It was also argued that the petitioner had a history of similar conduct.

Court notes previous conviction

• The Allahabad High Court took note of material placed before it showing that the petitioner had previously been convicted in a cheating-related criminal case.
• The accused cheated the public “to augment their living standard”, the court said, adding that it is another matter that they “sacrificed their standard of life in the process.”
• The offences in this case and the conduct of the petitioner are to be curbed with a heavy hand, it said.
• The Allahabad High Court remarked that the people promising these “great dreams” disappear overnight because they are mostly connected to their subscriber base through electronic means which are “as fleeting as their own presence.”
• Such crimes cannot be permitted to become “an epidemic in society” and destroy many a family who are robbed of their hard-earned money overnight, it added.
• Considering the ‘criminal history’ of the petitioner, the court dismissed the plea to quash the FIR.