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The Rs 60,000 crore Ponzi chit fund scam accused and Pearls Group owner, a fraudster, has died in jail
New Delhi: Nirmal Singh Bhangoo, the chairman of Pearls Group and the primary accused in a massive Rs 60,000 crore Ponzi chit fund scam, passed away on Sunday evening at Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital. He was 68 years old.
Bhangoo had been battling various health issues and succumbed to complications after being admitted to the hospital. An official confirmed that “Nirmal Singh Bhangoo passed away on August 25th around 12:25 am at DDU Hospital. He had been incarcerated in Jail No. 8 since 2016, facing six cases filed by different agencies, including the CBI and ED. Following complications after a kidney transplant, he was first taken to the jail hospital and later transferred to DDU at around 6:20 PM yesterday.”
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Bhangoo had been in judicial custody for eight years. Originally from Barnala, Punjab, he was arrested in 2016 after a CBI investigation revealed that he had defrauded over five crore investors of Rs 60,000 crore. The probe, initiated by the Supreme Court in 2014, uncovered numerous irregularities linked to two companies under the Pearls Group. In addition to the CBI investigation, a separate money laundering probe was conducted by the Enforcement Directorate.
One of Bhangoo’s companies, Pearls Golden Forest (PGF), had accumulated significant wealth before being shut down in 1996 due to income tax investigations. The Pearls Group was also known for sponsoring the World Kabaddi Cup organized by the Punjab government from 2010 to 2013.