Fear of ‘terror funding’ in the I Monetary Advisory (IMA) scam gets the newly-elected MPs up and running to New Delhi to meet Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman to seek CBI probe
Bengaluru: A delegation of newly-elected BJP members of the Parliament from Karnataka met Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman in New Delhi. They expressed fears of ‘terror funding’ in the I Monetary Advisory (IMA) scam in which over 50,000 investors were cheated of thousands of crores across Karnataka. As “only ministry of home affairs will be able to fathom this mystery”, they sought a CBI probe.
The delegation included Shobha Karandlaje, Tejasvi Surya, PC Mohan, Pratab Simha, GM Siddeshwara and BY Raghavendra.
Sitharaman received a two-page letter from them alleging that the Special Investigation Team (SIT) probe by the state government was an ‘eyewash’ as ‘those in power are themselves suspected to have turned a blind eye in the past two years’.
However, unless the state government hands over the probe to CBI or the courts refer the case to the agency, the Union government cannot initiate a CBI probe.
A social activist, Murtaza Khan, has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking justice for the cheated investors.
IMA offices raided
The SIT searched several premises of the IMA group including its headquarters in Shivajinagar, Bengaluru. The search operation that took place at the group’s Lady Curzon Road branch began early in the morning on June 20 (Thursday) and went late into the night.
30 kg of gold, 2,600 carats of diamond and 450 kg of silver with an estimated value of Rs 20 crore was seized by the team.
Several trunks of material were seized by the police from IMA headquarters and IMA jewellery showrooms. Sources said that the recoveries are yet to be quantified by the investigators but the documents that were recovered included those from customers, who had pledged properties to avail loans from IMA founder Mohammad Mansoor Khan.
ED wants custody of IMA directors
A parallel probe has been launched into the IMA scam by the Enforcement Directorate (ED). The ED has sought the custody of seven directors of IMA Group, who had been arrested by the city police and are at present in the custody of the SIT.
It has also issued summons to Mohammad Mansoor Khan to appear either in person or through a representative by June 24. The notice was pasted on the doors of the offices of IMA Group.
Details of all bank accounts, I-T returns and a list of all movable and immovable properties has been sought by the ED.
Mansoor Khan is suspected to have fled to Dubai on June 8.
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