BZ scam kingpin Zala sent to seven-day police custody

Cops probing reasons for his visit to Gnagar and A’bad while on the run; Zala is accused of masterminding a Rs 6,000cr chit fund scam; he was arrested on Friday

A court granted seven days of police custody to Bhupendrasinh Zala, the alleged mastermind of a Rs 6,000 crore chit fund scam, on Saturday.

Police arrested Zala from a farmhouse in Visnagar on Friday, where he had been hiding for nearly a week.

Chief Public Prosecutor Praveen Trivedi presented evidence revealing that investigators discovered two account books at Zala's BZ Financial Services office in Himmatnagar, documenting illegal transactions exceeding Rs 5,200 crore.

The accused had also raised Rs 360 crore from investors through bank transactions.

Despite orchestrating this massive scheme, Zala appeared in court without means to hire legal representation.

Siphoned off grants for ST students

Further investigations have uncovered Zala's role as trustee of the Grow More Foundation Trust, which received Rs 81 crore in grants for 270 tribal students. Allegedly, Rs 75 crore of these funds were diverted into the chit fund operation.

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