BALASORE: After the multi-crore chit fund scam that rocked Balasore recently, the duping of people by a cooperative has spread panic. Sumati Das, a domestic help in Khantapara area, is worried these days. The company with which she had deposited her hard earned money has been locked out and the branch manager has resigned. Sumati, who had deposited Rs. 8,000 with Kushaleswar Mahila Multi-purpose Cooperative Limited (KMMCL), is now running from pillar to post to get at least the principal amount back. Sumati had deposited the money with KMMCL at Khantapara on November 20, 2010 and was promised 10 per cent interest.Sushanta Kumar Rout, a tea stall owner, too fears for his Rs. 40,000 deposit. Rout, who had collected nearly Rs. 27,000 from others and deposited it with the cooperative, had to repay it from his pocket after the KMMCLclosure. Another depositor, Ramakanta Panda claims to be the biggest loser. He deposited ` 2.96 lakh after being assured of double the deposited money as loan. “I had planned to start a business with the Rs. 6 lakh that I would have got in return and subsequently repay the loan. Today, I am worried about the principal money,” he said.Panda said though the secretary and president of the organisation had given him two cheques for Rs. 1.47 lakh and Rs. 1 lakh, both bounced. Sources said KMMCL which also has branches at Jharanaghati and Betnoti had collected more than Rs. 20 lakh from at least 885 depositors. Though they were promised to get good returns and soft loans, it is alleged that not a single depositor has got his returns.“Now the secretary and the president are not responding to our calls and have threatened to book us in women atrocity cases, as both the posts are held by women,” alleged Panda.Meanwhile, the depositors have lodged a complaint with Khantapara police demanding justice and action against the duo. Khantapara police station Inspector-in-Charge Manoranjan Biswal said investigation would start after getting a clarification from the Deputy Registrar of Cooperative Societies (DRCS). Meanwhile, Kushaleswar Mahila Multi-purpose Cooperative Limited secretary Pravasini Mishra rubbished the allegations saying the money had been returned to the depositors. “Only Rs. 3 lakh has been mismanaged and spent for the office contingency. It would have been adjusted had we received the loan in time which was denied to us due to political interference,” she reasoned.
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