The Enforcement Directorate (ED) conducted searches on nine premises linked to the Sahara Group across multiple states in India on Monday, August 11, 2025, as part of an ongoing money laundering investigation. The raids targeted locations in Ghaziabad and Lucknow in Uttar Pradesh, Sriganganagar in Rajasthan, and Mumbai.
The ED's action is rooted in several First Information Reports (FIRs) registered against Humara India Credit Cooperative Society Ltd. (HICCSL) and other Sahara Group entities in Odisha, Bihar, and Rajasthan. These FIRs accuse the Sahara Group of large-scale cheating of depositors through forced re-deposits and denial of maturity payments, with over 500 FIRs registered against various Sahara Group entities, with more than 300 involving scheduled offences under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
The ED alleges that the Sahara Group operated a Ponzi scheme, luring depositors and agents with promises of high returns and commissions through entities like HICCSL, SCCSL, SUMCS, SMCSL, SICCL, SIRECL, and SHICL. The agency claims that the group managed funds without proper oversight, coerced reinvestments, manipulated records to conceal non-repayments, and siphoned off funds for illicit purposes, including benami assets and personal expenses. It's alleged that assets of the group were also sold for partial cash payments.
During the searches, the ED seized "incriminating" documents and records, and recorded statements from key individuals. The entities searched were related to land and share transactions with entities of the Sahara group.
The ED has previously attached assets of the Sahara Group, including 707 acres of land in Amby Valley valued at ₹1,460 crore, 1,023 acres of land in Sahara Prime City worth ₹1,538 crore, and movable assets worth ₹14.75 crore belonging to Chandni Roy, the daughter-in-law of the late Sahara Group chief Subrata Roy Sahara. Subrata Roy Sahara passed away in 2023 at the age of 75.
In connection with the case, the ED has arrested Anil Vailaparampil Abraham, an executive director of the Sahara Group's Chairman Core Management Office, and Jitendra Prasad Verma, a long-time associate and property broker of the Sahara Group. Both individuals are currently in judicial custody.
The ED's investigation revealed that instead of returning the money of investors on maturity, the group forced them to reinvest it forcibly and refused to pay. According to the investigation by ED, Sahara Group was running a ponzi scheme through its different companies. People and agents were lured with high profits and commissions and money was deposited. But this money was managed without any regulation and instead of returning the money to the investors, the company reinvested it and manipulated the papers.
