The Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of Madhya Pradesh has uncovered major irregularities in land transactions conducted by the Sahara Group in Sagar and Gwalior districts. Investigators revealed that Sahara sold approximately 152 acres of prime land - 100 acres in Sagar and 52 acres in Gwalior-far below market value, in transactions allegedly designed to evade proper deposit of sale proceeds to investors. The market worth of these properties is estimated to be around `400 crore.
While talking to The Pioneer, Additional DG (EOW) Upendra Jain told that after investigation, the EOW has registered an FIR in the scam. The inquiry highlighted a breach of a Supreme Court directive which required Sahara to deposit proceeds from land asset sales into the Sahara-SEBI Refund Account in Mumbai.
Instead, the funds were reportedly routed to Sahara’s company accounts.
EOW officials have issued notices to district registrars in Sagar and Gwalior, demanding comprehensive documentation of Sahara-owned lands and all relevant sale transactions. The agency is also investigating additional holdings in Vidisha.
The scandal forms part of the larger Sahara fraud saga: a Ponzi-like scheme executed through multiple cooperative and corporate entities including Sahara Credit Cooperative Society Ltd, Saharayn Universal Multipurpose Cooperative Society, and Stars Multipurpose Cooperative Society Ltd. Authorities allege massive siphoning of investor funds into benami assets, and accounts of coerced reinvestment of matured deposits and manipulated bookkeeping practices.
Earlier this year, the Enforcement Directorate attached over 1,023 acres of Sahara-linked land across 16 cities, worth ?1,538 crore, as part of its money laundering investigation. In Maharashtra’s ultra-luxurious Aamby Valley, over 707 acres valued at `1,460 crore were seized.
Despite there being an estimated 3.7 crore Sahara investors nationwide, only around 19,650 have formally applied for refunds-of which roughly 17,250 claims have been settled, resulting in disbursement of about ?138 crore. Meanwhile, the remaining depositors face cumbersome documentation hurdles and delayed payouts.
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had recently affirmed that the Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO) is actively probing Sahara’s corporate practices and evaluating why the majority of investors have not claimed refunds. Regional authorities in Madhya Pradesh have registered thousands of depositors’ complaints-especially in districts like Ashoknagar - seeking cancellation of Sahara cooperative licences and refund of maturity dues.
This ongoing investigation into Sahara’s land dealings signals renewed urgency to safeguard investor interests and ensure regulatory compliance. It also highlights persistent delays in refunding investors, and underscores the need for greater transparency in the cooperative sector. The fallout is expected to catalyze further inquiry, asset recovery, and judicial oversight in coming weeks.