Left, Congress come together in Bengal chit fund victims' rally

"Some leaders are roaming around in Delhi and Kolkata. They don't care about the common man's struggle," Chakraborty said, alluding to West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's recent visit to Delh

Kolkata, Nov 22 An organisation of investors and sufferers in the multi-crore rupee Saradha chit fund scam took out a rally, led by state CPI-M and Congress heavyweights, on Monday against state government's inactivity on the issue.

Communist Party of India-Marxist state secretariat member Sujan Chakraborty and Leader of Opposition in the assembly Abdul Mannan of the Congress were in the vanguard of the rally organised by the Chit Fund Sufferers Unity Forum (CFSUF) from College Square to Rani Rashmoni Avenue in central Kolkata. Many depositors and agents duped by the chit funds were part of the rally.

The rallyists later submitted a deputation to Governor Keshari Nath Tripathi.

"We have waited for six months after the formation of the new government but no action has been taken. The poor victims of the ponzi scheme are in tears while the state ministers and leaders of the ruling party are busy to hide hoards of black money," said Left Front legislature party leader Chakraborty.

"Some leaders are roaming around in Delhi and Kolkata. They don't care about the common man's struggle," Chakraborty said, alluding to West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's recent visit to Delhi.

Chakraborty also warned people not to get involved in money laundering saying it might turn out to be another form of scam post demonitisation.

"Black money holders are targeting the poor people with Jan Dhan Yojona accounts to deposit large sum of money. The people should realise that they would not be considered below poverty level with that amount in their account and would loose out on the subsidy," he said.

Later, Chief Minister Banerjee - who has emerged as one of the staunchest critics of the Narendra Modi led central goverment's recent demonetisaiton initiative - accused the CPI-M of helping out the BJP by organising the protest.

"If somebody wants to side by the BJP one can do it. Many chit funds operated during the Left Front rule. Has any CPI-M leader been arrested? Don't confude these two issues (demonetisation and chit fund scam)," she said.

The multi-billion rupee Saradha ponzi scam came to light in 2013 when the Saradha group's companies downed shutters without repaying lakhs of investors, who had parked their hard earned money in thegroup's companies, lured by the promise of astronomically high returns.

The Central Bureau of Investigation, probing the case, arrested and quizzed a number of ministers, leaders and parliament members belonging to the ruling Trinamool for their alleged involvement in the scandal.

IANS