Jaipur court directs SOG to probe Gajendra Singh Shekhawat's role in credit society scam

A Jaipur court has directed Rajasthan's Special Operations Group (SOG) to investigate the role of Union Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat in connection with the alleged Rs 884 crore credit society scam.

Additional District and Sessions Judge Pawan Agrawal overturned the order of a magistrate court, which had earlier refused to entertain the petition in the matter, and directed that allegations raised by the petitioners should be investigated.

Advocate AK Jain, the lawyer for the petitioner, told reporters that the court has directed an investigation against Shekhawat, his wife, and others in connection with an alleged Ponzi scheme related to the Sanjiv Credit Cooperative Society.

The court was hearing a petition, filed by Barmer district residents Ladu Singh and Guman Singh, claiming they invested Rs 54 lakh and Rs 14 lakh respectively due to Gajendra Singh Shekhawat which were never returned and they were cheated.

The petitioners submitted before the court that Rajasthan SOG had registered an FIR on August 23, 2019, after a preliminary inquiry on the complaint of many investors and has found that around 50,000 investors have been cheated worth Rs 884 crore by the credit society.

"During the (SOG) investigation, it has been revealed that a lot of the amount of the cooperative society has been transferred to Shekhawat, his wife, and compes owned by him. These compes purchased land and using that money," Jain said on Thursday.

"Even though their names figured in the investigation and accounts, the SOG has not investigated the matter against them as well as neither the property has been sealed, not have they met the accused," he added.

( With inputs from ANI )