The Calcutta High Court has questioned the performance of a committee handling a chit-fund case after finding that roughly 12 years of work had resulted in only ₹96 crore being returned to depositors, despite estimated government spending of more than ₹120 crore.
A division bench of Justices Rajarshi Bharadwaj and Sudip Deb expressed dissatisfaction with the functioning of the committee headed by Justice S.P. Talukdar, according to a report by Sangbad Pratidin. The bench asked what the committee had achieved over the past 12 years and whether public money was being spent without adequate results.
The hearing examined how many depositors had received money, how much remained unpaid and how many properties linked to the companies had been attached. Depositors’ counsel Arindam Das said three central questions arose during the proceedings: the total number of companies involved, the overall value of their assets, and the number of depositors who had applied for repayment.
The court also sought clarity on the 103 entities sent to the committee for action. In the case of Rose Valley, the report noted that 54 companies were involved, underlining the need to identify each company and trace its money and assets separately. The court warned that delays in identifying properties could allow them to be transferred or sold.
The bench placed particular emphasis on small depositors. It said the court was not sitting to benefit influential depositors and that priority should be given to lower- and middle-income people who had invested amounts such as ₹5,000 or ₹10,000. The court observed that larger depositors could afford to appoint lawyers, while ordinary depositors often could not, making protection of their interests a responsibility of the court.
The committee’s handling of properties also came under scrutiny. The proceedings referred to property belonging to Vibgyor in the Dooars, valued at approximately ₹54 crore, which was reportedly sold in 2025 even though it was under the committee’s purview. The report said the committee had received a complaint but did not take action.
The court rejected the committee’s explanation that it lacked sufficient staff. The committee was reported to have 24 employees and 13 data-entry operators. Using an estimated annual expenditure of ₹10 crore, the bench calculated that public spending over 12 years could exceed ₹120 crore, compared with ₹96 crore returned to depositors.
The court said such an outcome was not acceptable when public revenue was being used. It also observed that the committee had sufficient powers and directed it to use them to accelerate the recovery and repayment process.
The committee has been ordered to submit a detailed report at the next hearing on November 19. The report is expected to address the number of companies and depositors involved, the assets identified and attached, repayments made so far, pending claims and the committee’s expenditure and actions on reported property-related complaints.
