By Our Correspondent
BHUBANESWAR: Economic Offences Wing, Odisha, arrested the accused Mohan Kumar Parida of Vill-Kandagardi, PS-Chandabali, Dist-Bhadrak, on 28.05.2024 from Chandbali in EOW PS Case No.06 dt.16.05.2024 U/s 406/420/467/468/471/120- B IPC, Sec. 4/5/6/ PCMCS (Banning) Act, Sec.6 of OPID Act r/w Sec.66 IT Act.
The arrested accused is going to be produced before the Hon’ble Court of PO, Designated Court under OPID Act, Cuttack today i.e. on 28.05.2024. The case was registered on the written allegation of one Chhita Ranjan Palo of Kalinga Nagar, Bhubaneswar against the Company M/s Way to Add India Pvt. Ltd. and its Managing Director Mohan Kumar Parida and others for inducing him and many other investors to pay high returns that to 26% interest per month for 03 months on the invested amount apart from promising different bonus and commission under different schemes floated by the Company.
Special bonus was there for making new members join the scheme. Being induced, during the year 2023, the informant deposited Rs.44.60 lakhs in total and initially got the return of Rs.12,600/-. Thereafter, no amount was paid to him by the accd. Director Mohan Kumar Parida who cheated the informant of his invested amount like many others in respect of crores of rupees.
The arrested accused Mohan Kumar Parida is the MD of M/s Way to Add India (P) Ltd. The other Director of the Company is his wife Pushpalata Behura. During the period 2020-23, the arrested accused Mohan Kumar Parida being MD of the above Company floated different schemes like Autopool package, boosting package etc. and induced the members of the public to invest with the Company through its two schemes to get hefty returns i.e. 26% per month consecutively for 03 months on the invested amount.
Besides, there was the bonus of 2% for the investors for enrolling new members. One is required to join the schemes by depositing Rs.2500/- which is non-refundable and after depositing the amount, the investor would be given one login ID under which he can further enroll 03 persons to get more commission/bonus. Once, an investor joins the scheme initially he was being given the Ayurvedic products of Rs.500/- which was stopped subsequently. As found during investigation, to win the confidence of the investors, the accd. MD made some initial return to the investors but after collection of more than Rs.50 Cr. from 2000 investors from Odisha, the accd. MD of the Company abruptly closed the schemes and the Company office and fled away with the collected amount which was misappropriated by him.
The Company M/s Way to Add India (P) Ltd. was registered with ROC, Cuttack during the year 2020, having its registered office at Prachi Vihar, Palasuni, Rasulgarh. The basic objectives of the Company are to deal with online rechargenservices like mobile, DTH, air ticket, bus ticket etc. and FMCG products.
In a departure from its objectives, during the period from 2020-23, the accused MD Mohan Parida floated different schemes and went on inducing the members of public to invest with the company through its schemes to get high returns of 26% per month for 03 consecutive months on the invested amount.
A member is required to deposit a non-refundable amount of Rs.2500/- for joining the schemes after which he will be assigned with a log in ID . By using the login ID, the investor used to invest in the Company by depositing his amount in the Company’s accounts maintained with SBI, ICICI and BOI.
Investors were being asked to make more members to join in the schemes so as to get 2% bonus and alluring commission.
Three persons can join the scheme under one login ID. As the number of downline members were increasing, the up line members were being paid lucrative bonus/commission.
The company was actually running a Ponzi scheme in a pyramidic binary structure. The initial returns made by the Company were being made from the investment of the new members.
As found the Company through its MD Mohan Kumar Parida has collected the public deposits more than Rs.50 Cr. from around 2000 investors of Odisha. The Company was not authorized to take any public deposit either by RBI or SEBI.
The Company cunningly was not issuing any money receipt rather asking the investors to deposit the invested amount in the Company accounts. The arrested accd. Mohan Kumar Parida was the MD and also the authorized signatory of the Company accounts. He has done his MBA.
The collected money was found to have been diverted to many other accounts.
During investigation, many incriminating clues have been arrived at and a laptop has been seized containing many incriminating materials like list of investors, the amount invested, payment sheet etc. The investigation of the case is on.
