The special court for the Tamil Nadu Protection of Interests of Depositors Act cases in Coimbatore on Wednesday sentenced a woman from Salem and her son to undergo 10 years of imprisonment for cheating 76 investors of ₹ 1.15 crore in a country chicken scam that took place in Erode district in 2012.
Special court judge A.S. Ravi awarded the punishment to G. Mallika (47) from Kamaraj Nagar at Omalur near Salem and her son G. Mukesh (27). The court issued non-bailable warrants against the mother-son-duo as they did not appear to hear the conviction.
As per the chargesheet filed by the Economic Offences Wing (EOW), Erode, Mallika, her husband S.K. Ganesan, Mukesh and another son aged 17 started two companies named Raja Rajeswari Poultry Farm and Sri Raja Rajeswari Poultry Farm based at Vijayamangalam near Perundurai in Erode in March, 2012.
The accused promised investors of providing 375 country chicken chicks, shed for their rearing and feeds for an investment of ₹ 1 lakh. They assured them of paying ₹ 7,000 per month for maintenance and an annual bonus of ₹ 8,000. The investors were also assured that they would get the initial investment of ₹ 1 lakh after three years.
In December 2012, EOW registered a case against the two companies and the four persons after one of the investors V.P. Natchimuthu from Kuppandampalayam near Bhavani complained that he was duped. As per the chargesheet, 76 persons invested ₹ 1.15 crore in the two companies.
A source in the know of the case said that Ganesan died during the trial. Ganesan's second son, who was a minor at the time of the offence, will be trialled by a court in Erode district, said the source.
The court imposed a total fine of ₹ 75 lakh against Mallika (₹ 52.50 lakh) and Mukesh (₹ 22.50), out of which ₹ 70 lakh should be given as compensation to the victims.
