In Parliament: Patiala MP Dr Dharamvira Gandhi raises issue of delay in repaying people duped by Pearls Group

Aman Sood

Tribune News Service

Patiala, August 5

Patiala MP Dr Dharamvira Gandhi today raised in the Lok Sabha the issue of pending payments to be made by Pearls Group’s companies to lakhs of investors and sought a reply as to why the payment process was still lingering despite liquidation of their assets.

In her reply, the Finance Minister said the said properties were under litigation in various courts and thus yet to be disposed of.

5.85 crore investors affected

• Pearls Group’s companies owe more than ~46,000 crore to at least 5.85 crore investors spread across Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan and Delhi
• More than 10,000 properties of the group were identified to be sold, besides liquidation of their cash deposits, for making payment to the investors
• Gandhi asked why the government had not auctioned those properties so far to compensate the investors

Almost nine years after the Supreme Court cleared the decks for a quick sale of all assets of the Pearls Group’s companies, which owe more than Rs 46,000 crore to at least 5.85 crore investors spread across states like Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan and Delhi, the Patiala MP raised the issue of delay in repaying investors. More than 10,000 properties of the companies were identified to be sold, besides liquidation of their various cash deposits, for making payment to the investors.

Speaking in the Lok Sabha, the Patiala MP asked a supplementary question highlighting the plight of hapless victims who were still waiting to get their hard-earned money back. “Rs 50,000-crore properties of PACL/Pearl group were identified some years back. Why has the government not auctioned those properties to compensate the investors?” asked Gandhi.

“The Finance Minister has replied that a majority of the identified properties are involved in litigation at various stages in different courts and hence could not be auctioned,” Gandhi told The Tribune after the session.

“Many people duped by these companies have died, ended life by suicide, grown old or have lost documents. It is sad that thousands lost their money and the Indian Government has done nothing to safeguard their interests,” he said.

The money was collected by Pearls Agrotech Corporation Limited (PACL) and Pearls Golden Forest Limited (PGFL), both managed by Nirmal Singh Bhangoo group, under the garb of sale and development of agricultural land.

In June 2023, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann had said the state government had started the process of confiscating properties owned by the Pearls Group and selling these to compensate people who were allegedly duped by the firm.

“The state government will recover every single penny plundered from the people of Punjab. The properties will be sold,” he had said. Last year, the AAP government had handed over the probe into the scam to the Vigilance Bureau.