Belagavi Police have transferred the case involving financial irregularities by Adityaraj Capital Private Limited (ACPL) to the Criminal Investigation Department for further investigation.
Police Commissioner Borase Bhushan Gulabrao has said that since the amount involved in the ponzi schemes run by the agency was beyond ₹50 crore, it will be transferred as per rules.
Preliminary investigation in the affairs of the firm has found that it has collected deposits and investments from at least 6,000 people promising returns as high as 6%. It has no approval from RBI, SEBI or other regulators.
The company actively encouraged members of the public to invest through meetings and promotional programmes, offering guaranteed returns of 5% per month through written agreements and investment documents.
Its business model operated on two tracks, one, raising funds from the public and ther other, offering investment opportunities. However, investors were not adequately informed about the risks involved.
The promise of unusually high assured returns raises immediate regulatory concerns. Investors were also made to sign leverage funding agreements that included lock-in periods but lacked proper risk disclosures. The district administration believes these arrangements fall within the ambit of the Karnataka Protection of Interest of Depositors (KPID) Act.
ACPL staff had told investigators that funds were invested in futures and options trading. But their operations were all under suspicion as no individual or entity can legally guarantee fixed returns from such market-linked investments as per rules.
ACPL was not registered as a Portfolio Manager with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) and therefore, could not legally manage public investment portfolios or assure returns.
“Prima facie, the operation resembles a pyramid scheme where money collected from new investors is used to pay returns to earlier investors,” the Police Commissioner said.
Such schemes typically benefit early entrants while exposing later investors to significant losses.
Initial probe has revealed that Adityaraj Capital Private Limited mobilised funds from more than 6,500 investors. Preliminary findings indicate that approximately ₹211 crore passed through four bank accounts before being transferred to accounts linked to the company’s entities.
Investigators have also found that investors were issued promissory notes and post-dated cheques which are now being treated as documentary evidence of investments made under the scheme.
The company misrepresented its financial viability and failed to disclose critical information regarding the deployment of investor funds before officers. The lack of transparency and non-disclosure of material facts are key elements being examined under provisions of the KPID Act.
Investigators also suspected that digital records were deliberately destroyed by the promoters. The ACPL office has now been sealed and a case has been registered at Tilakwadi Police Station under the provisions of the Banning of Unregulated Deposit Schemes (BUDS) Act and the Karnataka Protection of Interest of Depositors (KPID) Act.
It names company founder and CEO Balraj Mane and several others in the case.
Meanwhile, Mr. Mane, who is absconding, released a video saying that he has done no wrong. “We have followed all rules and are confident of proving our innocence before court,” he said.
Published - June 07, 2026 08:05 pm IST
Source: The Hindu - India News
