Four Singapore-based company's employees charged in India for alleged financial fraud

Indian police on Friday arrested four officials of Singapore-based online survey company Speak Asia, including its chief operating officer in India, Tarak Vimlendu Bajpai, on charges of duping investors across India of 13 billion rupees (S$354 million), the Indian Express reported yesterday.

The others are portal technicians Rajeev Manmohan Mehrotra and Shaikh Rais Latif and finance accountant Ravi Janakraj Khanna.

According to the Times of India, Joint Police Commissioner (Crime) Himanshu Roy said the suspects were arrested "in connection with a financial fraud". He told the Press Trust of India that the company had allegedly told investors they would get 54,000 rupees a year in return for investing 11,000 rupees annually.

The suspects were produced before a court which remanded them in police custody till Aug 4. The charges against them include cheating, criminal conspiracy and breach of trust under the Indian Penal Code and several sections under the rarely-cited Prize Chits And Money Circulation Schemes (Banning) Act, 1978.

Speak Asia, which began operations last year and has its office in Ubi Crescent here is registered in Singapore but has the bulk of its members in India. It has had its two bank accounts recently closed by United Overseas Bank.

A check with the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority records showed the company was registered under a director, Ms Harendar Kaur, and a secretary Wong Chuen Shya, who are both Singaporeans. It has a paid up capital of S$100,000 and is owned by holding company Podium Ring International, which is registered in the British Virgin Islands.

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