Absconding for weeks, Heera Group’s Nowhera Shaik held in Gurugram in ponzi case

The arrest came the same day Telangana High Court refused to set aside the non-bailable warrant against her.

Hyderabad: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday, May 21, arrested Heera Group chief Nowhera Shaik from Gurugram in connection with an alleged Rs 3,000 crore investment fraud involving around 1.72 lakh investors, the same day the Telangana High Court refused to set aside the non-bailable warrant against her.

Shaik, who had been absconding and allegedly using fake identities and forged documents to evade arrest, was picked up in a joint operation by the ED and Haryana Police. She has since been brought to Hyderabad.

About the case

The ED investigation stems from first information reports (FIR) registered by the Telangana and Andhra Pradesh Police. The agency alleged that Shaik and her associates collected over Rs 3,000 crore from investors by promising annual returns of nearly 36 per cent, none of which were paid back.

Investors from the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries were also among those allegedly defrauded. The agency claimed the Heera Group had no genuine business operations and that investor money was siphoned into personal accounts before being used to acquire movable and immovable properties.

The ED further alleged that Shaik had floated 24 companies and operated 182 bank accounts across India, with several foreign accounts also used in the transactions under investigation.

The ED had earlier attached multiple properties allegedly linked to proceeds of crime, and following Supreme Court directions, an auction of these properties had been initiated. The agency alleged, however, that Shaik repeatedly failed to cooperate with the proceedings and attempted to obstruct the auction process, prompting the apex court to cancel her bail and direct her to surrender within a week. 

When she remained absconding despite the order, a Special PMLA Court in Hyderabad issued a non-bailable warrant against her on May 7.

Telangana High Court intervention

Earlier on Thursday, Shaik had sought relief from the Telangana High Court, where Justice EV Venugopal declined to grant an interim stay or set aside the warrant. The judge directed the ED and the Telangana government to file their responses to the writ petition and adjourned the matter to after the court vacation, while also directing Shaik to surrender before the authorities.

Her counsel had argued that the Special Court failed to take into account her stated willingness to surrender and that delays in completing the registration of auctioned properties were attributable to lapses by the ED, a contention the agency was yet to formally respond to.

Acting on fresh intelligence about her location in Gurugram, the ED conducted the joint operation with Haryana Police that led to her arrest later that evening. Further investigation is underway, the agency said.