In one of the biggest scams of recent times, the Central Bureau of Investigation has recovered documents from the premises of Delhi—based real estate company, PACL — also known as 'Pearls'— and its sister company PGF, showing that they allegedly used ponzi scheme to cheat nearly five crore investors of a staggering Rs 45,000 crore. 

The agency has registered a case, naming PGF director Nirmal Singh Bhangoo and PACL director Sukhdev Singh besides six other directors of the companies. The groups had allegedly raised investments from over five crore gullible investors through collective investment scheme under the garb of sale and development of agricultural land, CBI spokesperson Kanchan Prasad said. 

Prasad said after preliminary analysis of documents the agency came to know the enormity of scam which was executed through a chain of lakhs of agents. 

In ponzi schemes, returns are given to investors from the money collected from other depositors in a pyramid—like structure. 

"Initial investigation by CBI has revealed an alleged scam to the tune of Rs 45,000 crore in a case relating to an alleged fraud by PACL and others through raising investments...through collective investment scheme under the garb of sale and development of agricultural land," the CBI said. 

Sources said at first they did not realise the gravity of the scam and it was only through data stored in some seized laptops that they came to know that their earlier estimates were just a tip of the iceberg. 

Sources said the agency had carried out an inquiry, on the orders of the Supreme Court, into allegations that the companies had collected crores of rupees through deposits from public at large through their ponzi scheme promising land. During the searches in last few days, agency sleuths recovered documents of benami properties worth crores of rupees in India and abroad. 

The investments made by the company in a hotel in Gold Coast (Australia) have also come under the CBI's scanner. 

The spokesperson said CBI has found prima—facie evidence which shows that PGF, having office in Paschim Vihar in West Delhi, has raised investments by issuing bogus land allotment letters to induce the investors. "It was revealed that after PGF was directed by the High Court of Punjab and Haryana to wind up the scheme and refund the investors, a similar fraudulent scheme was operated under the name of PACL with office at Barakhamba Road," the sources said. 

Funds collected from new investors of PACL were allegedly used to repay the earlier investors of PGF to stave off criminal prosecution. 

The agency carried out searches at the offices of PGF and PACL in New Delhi, Chandigarh, Mohali, Ropar and Jaipur. 

CBI sources said the accused have been called for questioning even as a preliminary round of interrogation has been done by the sleuths. 

The case had first come to light in 2002, when SEBI had ruled that the investment schemes floated by PACL were in the nature of so—called Collective Investment Schemes and so the company needed to abide by the rules. This order was quashed in 2003 by the Rajasthan high court, which was challenged by SEBI the following year. Following this, in September 2011, SEBI had again moved the apex court seeking an early hearing in the case. (TIMES OF INDIA)