Quick look of Indian businessmen who were arrested recently for fraud

Manoj Sharma got Subrata Roy on March 4, as the Sahara chief was produced in the Supreme Court after being arrested by the Lucknow police four days earlier. But the chubby ink thrower from Gwalior missed many others. At least four businessmen were arrested in 2013 alone, and another two the previous year.

Print Edition: 30 Mar, 2014

Sahara Group chief Subrata Roy had ink thrown at him outside Supeme Court on March 4, 2014

Manoj Sharma got Subrata Roy on March 4, as the Sahara chief was produced in the Supreme Court after being arrested by the Lucknow police four days earlier. But the chubby ink thrower from Gwalior missed many others. The case of Satyam's B. Ramalinga Raju, arrested in January 2009, of Pyramid Saimira Theatres' P. S. Swaminathan, arrested fi ve months after Raju, and of Britannia's Rajan Pillai before them, who died in Tihar Jail in 1995, may be distant memories. But at least four businessmen were arrested in 2013 alone, and another two the previous year.

Subrata Roy
Managing Worker, Sahara India

WHEN: Supreme Court on February 26 issued a non-bailable warrant against Roy for failing to appear before it in person. Arrested by Lucknow police on February 28
WHY: A multibilliondollar Sahara investment scheme was later ruled to be illegal
WHAT HAPPENED: Roy said Sahara would sell assets to pay Rs 22,500 crore it owes investors

Anjani Sinha
CEO, National Spot Exchange Ltd

WHEN: Arrested in October 2013
WHY: Rs 5,574 crore settlement crisis at the exchange
WHAT HAPPENED: Bail rejected in February 2014

Rajesh Agarwal
Co-founder and Director, Micromax Technologies

WHEN: Arrested in August 2013
WHY: Caught allegedly pbaryiibneg fao rRs 3h0a vliangk ha building owned by him recognised as legitimate
WHAT HAPPENED: Granted bail

Williams S. Pinckney
Chairman and CEO, Amway India

WHEN: Arrested in May 2013
WHY: Charged with financial irregularities
WHAT HAPPENED: Granted bail in May 2013

Sudipto Sen
Group Chairman, Saradha Group

WHEN: Arrested in Kashmir in April 2013
WHY: Collapse of a ponzi scheme run by Saradha
WHAT HAPPENED: Sentenced to three years' imprisonment in February 2014

Subhinder Singh Prem
Managing Director, Reebok India

WHEN: Arrested in March 2012
WHY: For his alleged involvement in a Rs 870 crore fraud in the company
WHAT HAPPENED: Granted bail in July 2013

WIDE SPECTRUM
The ranks of those arrested were bolstered by the so-called 2G spectrum scam of 2011

Shahid Usman Balwa, Director, Swan Telecom Pvt Ltd
> In February 2011, on charges of criminal conspiracy, cheating and forgery

Asif Balwa, Brother of Shahid Balwa, and Rajiv Agarwal from Kusegaon Fruits & Vegetables Pvt Ltd
> In March, alleged to have paid a bribe of nearly Rs 214 crore to former telecom minister A. Raja

Vinod Goenka, Director, Swan Telecom Pvt Ltd
> In April, for criminal conspiracy, cheating and forgery

Others (all charged with abetment to cheating, bribing government servants and forgery) -

Sanjay Chandra
Director, Unitech

Gautam Doshi
Group MD, Reliance ADAG

Hari Nair
Company Secy, Reliance ADAG

Surendra Pipara
Senior VP, Reliance ADAG

Sharad Kumar
Managing Director, Kalaignar TV

(Research by Niti Kiran and Jyotindra Dubey)