The letter, purported to have been written by the promoter of a controversial chit fund, under investigation for the bankruptcy of small depositors in West Bengal, is already generating a heated political controversy in the state, and could even prove to be explosive nationally if any of its claims turn out to to be true.
The letter, marked 'Most URGENT AND IMPORTANT' bearing the date 6th. April 2013, apparently written on the letter-head of Sudipta Sen, Chairman and Managing Director of the Saradha Group, addressed to the Central Bureau of Investigation, makes allegations in ungrammatical language about prominent public figures -- businesspersons and politicians -- charging them of exerting pressure to lend money for various projects.
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The letter is being seen by some as a tell-all account and by others as a ruse by Sen to get out of the spot he finds himself in by naming prominent personalities.
The purported letter begins by saying that it may be treated as Sen's "last wish before my death which may occur any day by way of suicide or otherwise" and then goes on to add:
I shall be committing suicide any moment not because I am physically or mentally sick or weak, but because I am feeling helpless because of unscrupulous persons and cheats in the society because of whom the entire public money which has been collected in my name or by using my name has come to such a risk that I may not be able to refund them…
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The letter alleges that two Trinamool Congress MPs Kunal Ghosh, former CEO of Saradha Group Media, and Srinjoy Bose, MD of Pratidin Publication that brings out the daily, Sangbad Pratidin, approached him, citing their close links to West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, and took huge sums of money on various occasions and later forced him to transfer the ownership of various media organisations at throwaway prices. Both the Trinamool leaders have denied these allegations.
Sen goes on to narrate not only that he "suffered attacks and extortion from influential politicians in Bengal" but also accuses a string of powerful politicians and businesspersons in Assam, Odisha and Jharkhand of taking money from him, "using him" and "backstabbing him at gunpoint". The most sensational name in the letter is of Nalini Chidambaram, wife of union finance minister P. Chidambaram, who was the union home minister at the time, about whom the letter says:
Another two persons in huge manner damage me. One is Mrs Manoranjana Sinh and one is Mr Matang Sinh. Mrs Manoranjana Sinh contacted us for selling her Positive Groups to us and took me to Chennai in the chamber of the Mrs NALINI CHIDAMBARAM as her advocate. Madam Chidambaram requested me to help her for setting up a channel in Northeast in Guwahati and support her extending Rs 42 crores to her company and Madam Chidambaram herself prepared the agreement wherein she is the sole arbitrator for if at all any dispute arises and requested me for financially support her immediately and also Madam Chidambaram fixed her consultancy and during period of one and half years on which account more than Rs 1 (One) Crores have been given to her. Most of the time when she visited Calcutta with Manoranjan Sinh her airfare and taj hotel bills have been paid by me, that is also a very big amount. Manoranjana Sinh assured me that Madam Chidambaram is the wife of Mr P. Chidambaram the then Hon’ble Home Minister and if this Chidambaram family slightly stand by me then I will be great clout in India. Though Madam Chidambaram never assured me like this but without assessing my financial strength she has also pressurised me for supporting her Rs 42 crores. So far I remember that I have already paid Rs 25 crores to Mrs Manoranjana Sinh in the name of the Company GNN India Pvt. Ltd...
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Another one is Matang Sinh, who is the ex-husband of Manoranjana Sinh who has also taken Rs 28 crores from us in his various accounts. Finally he has given 50% shares of NE Bangla...
We were not able to contact Mrs Chidambaram or others against whom various allegations have been made in the letter at the time of filing this report.
Also see this article in the Hoot on The chit fund media baron
