What Charges Did ED File Against a Manipur Firm for Cheating 5,000 Investors?

Imphal, July 16 (NationPress) The Directorate of Enforcement (ED) has submitted a Supplementary Prosecution Complaint (SPC) against a private firm based in Manipur, along with its Director and others, under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, concerning the fraud involving 5,000 investors, officials reported on Wednesday.

The ED’s Imphal Sub Zonal office lodged the SPC against M/s Birla Emporium Pvt Ltd and its Director Yumnan Irabanta Singh, along with other associates, under the PMLA regulations due to the fraud involving 5,000 unsuspecting investors. The investigation by the ED was initiated based on FIRs filed by the CID (Crime Branch) of Manipur, citing various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), 1860, against Singh, the Director of M/s Birla Emporium Pvt. Ltd. and M/s Ira Finance Pvt. Ltd., as mentioned in an official statement.

The FIRs alleged that between 2019 and 2021, Singh was running a deceptive investment scheme that promised high returns to investors, but ultimately, he and his accomplices misappropriated the funds of numerous individual depositors.

The inquiry revealed that Singh and his businesses were running an unauthorized deposit scheme, soliciting significant sums from the public with the assurance of exorbitant returns.

Singh and his associates have defrauded approximately 5,000 investors in Manipur, resulting in a wrongful loss exceeding Rs 250 crore to these naive depositors, while he gained unjustly.

Moreover, it was discovered that M/s Birla Emporium Private Limited and M/s Ira Finance Private Limited provided loans to the public against the security of their properties (Loan Against Property), and the properties of the borrowers were transferred and registered in the names of the Directors and staff of M/s Birla Emporium Private Limited via sale deeds.

The company ceased operations for depositors in the first quarter of 2020, failing to return the promised funds. The properties registered in the promoters' names were also retained by them without restitution.

Additionally, these funds, identified as Proceeds of Crime (POC), were later used to acquire multiple properties, as the statement indicated. The ED's Imphal Sub Zonal office identified 85 immovable properties registered under M/s Birla Emporium Pvt. Ltd., Yumnan Irabanta Singh, and his associates, obtained through POC.

In this context, movable and immovable assets linked to M/s Birla Emporium Pvt Ltd, its Director Yumnan Irabanta Singh, and others, totaling Rs 28.02 crore, were provisionally attached.

Furthermore, a Prosecution Complaint for the confiscation of attached assets was presented to the Special PMLA Court on June 6, 2025, against M/s Birla Emporium Pvt. Ltd and its Director Yumnam Irabanta Singh along with others. The ED confirmed that further investigations are ongoing.