Take strict action against Pearl group

Chandigarh: Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann has asked deputy commissioners to identify all properties of the Pearl group, a chit fund company, in their respective districts. Chairing a virtual meeting with the deputy commissioners (DCs), commissioners of police and senior superintendents of police, he said on Wednesday the Pearl group had committed a huge fraud with the people of the state for which it must be made accountable.

Every DC must identify the properties of the group in their respective districts and submit it to the state government, Mann said, adding that a state-level list will be compiled in consonance with the directions of the Supreme Court and Justice Lodha committee, an official release said. He said the DCs and commissioners of police or senior superintendents of police must appoint sub-divisional magistrates and deputy superintendents of police as the nodal officers of their respective sub-divisions for identifying the properties.

The revenue records must be checked to ensure complete transparency in the process, he said. "Red entries must be made in the revenue records so that no one is able to sell or purchase this property," he said.

The chief minister also asked the chief secretary and Director General of Police to personally supervise this work for its smooth execution in a time-bound manner. In August last year, Mann had ordered a probe into the alleged fraud committed by the chit fund company. The Pearls group had allegedly cheated many people in various parts of the country, including Punjab, by illegally operating different investment schemes.

Before coming to power, Mann, during his election campaign, had promised that after the formation of the AAP government, the hard-earned money of people would be returned by confiscating assets of chit fund companies.