The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has filed a chargesheet against Akshayagold Farms and Villas India Limited, its promoters and directors, who have been accused of cheating lakhs of people by collecting deposits without any permission from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI).
In the same case, the agency had earlier attached assets worth ₹268.24 crore, including 376 immovable properties in the form of agricultural lands, commercial plots, buildings and flats located in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Maharashtra, and movable properties in the form of bank account balances and investments in shares.
Among those arraigned are Bhogi Subramanyam, Devaki Harnath Babu and M. Sudhakara Rao, said the ED, adding that the court concerned has taken cognisance of the chargesheet.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the police in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Karnataka had earlier registered multiple cases involving Akshayagold, its directors and others under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the respective State Public Deposit Acts.
According to the agency, the accused collected funds from people whom the agents roped in on a commission basis. “A hierarchy of agents was created in a pyramidal manner to earn high commissions. Investors were lured into investing their life savings by promising sites in the advertised real estate ventures and by offering high rate of returns in various deposit schemes,” it said.
