Sebi to auction 66 properties of Saradha Group on April 11 to recover investors' money

Markets regulator Sebi on Monday said it will auction 66 properties of Saradha Group on April 11 at a reserve price totalling Rs 32 crore to recover money raised by the firm from the public through illicit schemes.

The properties to go under the hammer include land parcels located in West Bengal, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) said in a notice.

The regulator said that the e-auction will be conducted between 11 am and 1 pm on April 11, 2023. The total reserve price of these properties is pegged at about Rs 32 crore.

Sebi has engaged Quikr Realty to assist it in sale of the properties and appointed C1 India as the e-auction provider.

The development came after the Calcutta High Court passed an order in June 2022, whereby it directed Sebi to proceed with the auction of properties of Saradha Group of Companies. The entire exercise was directed to be completed within three months.

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 Saradha Group, a consortium of over 239 private companies, allegedly ran chit-fund operations in West Bengal, Assam, and Odisha and raised around Rs 4,000 crore from 1.7 million depositors before it collapsed in April 2013.

As per the notice, the regulator said bidders should make their own independent enquiries regarding the encumbrances, litigations, attachments, and acquisition of liabilities of the property put on auction, prior submitting their bid.

"The purchaser shall participate in the e-auction on his own behalf and no third party intervention, like authorized agent/representative, would be permitted. The successful bidder shall bear the charges/ fee payable for transfer of the property in his/her name. All taxes shall be borne by the purchaser," the notice said.

In September 2022, the regulator said that it will auction 69 properties of Saradha Group of Companies on November 1 at a reserve price of Rs 30 crore.

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