Time and again we have been warned about the authenticity of chit funds. The growing business that it is leads many people to invest in it for the lure of profits.
Now news reports say that popular Kannada actress Sanjjanaa Galrani has lost Rs 28 lakh in a chit fund and she has lodged a complaint with the Malleshwaram police station in this regard.
The owner Mahesh, and his wife Nirupa have been named as the accused in the case. The actress was duped into investing in it thinking of the name and trust Mahesh and his company had built up over the past few years. She invested an amount of Rs 28 lakh over a period of two years. Among others who complained, it is gathered that the duo had cheated many more people all amounting to the tune of Rs 18 crore approximately.
The matter came to light when no one came to collect the funds. It was then that they found that the chit fund couple had shut their office two months ago and decamped with the corpus funds. Close to six cases have already been registered against them.
Malleshwaram police have begun investigations. A word of caution: It is advisable to invest only in registered chit funds that have completed many chit funds in the past. The Ministry of Corporate Affairs has an exhaustive list of registered chit funds; however, many chit funds get unlisted, so do your research before investing.