Samruddha Jeevan Foods: ED attaches firm’s assets worth Rs 101 crore

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Tuesday attached assets worth Rs 101 crore of Samruddha Jeevan Foods India Ltd in an alleged Ponzi scheme case. The Pune-based firm’s promoter Mahesh Kisan Motewar and others have been accused of cheating 20 lakh people across the country of Rs 3,500 crore. The ED is investigating the case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

During its probe, the agency found that Motewar and his firm collected money from investors and allegedly laundered it through 34 group companies. This money, according to the ED, was used to “acquire immovable properties ranging from plots/land, commercial complex, hotels, resorts, flats, bungalows and movable properties.

In 2013, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) barred the directors of Samruddha Jeevan from raising money from investors. The company had been collecting money from small investors, the majority of whom are from rural and semi-urban areas with promises of huge returns from cattle and goat farms.