Mastermind of ₹49,000 crore PACL scam Gurnam Singh arrested in Punjab after duping 5 crore investors

In a major breakthrough in one of India’s largest investment frauds, the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of Uttar Pradesh Police on July 10 evening arrested Gurnam Singh, director of Pearls Agro-Tech Corporation Limited (PACL), from Punjab’s Rupnagar district. Singh, 69, is accused of masterminding a ₹49,000 crore Ponzi-style scam that defrauded over five crore investors across at least 10 states.

Authorities allege that PACL lured unsuspecting investors with promises of lucrative land plots and assured returns under bogus real estate schemes, all while operating without a Non-Banking Financial Company (NBFC) license — a violation of the RBI Act.

“This was a textbook pyramid racket,” said EOW Director General Neera Rawat. “Early investors were paid with money from new recruits. Agents, incentivised with large commissions, were asked to rope in friends and family, and mass recruitment seminars were held regularly.”

Originally incorporated in Jaipur in 1996 as Guruvant Agro-Tech Ltd, the company was renamed PACL Ltd in 2011, with its headquarters at Barakhamba Road in Delhi. Over the years, it expanded aggressively, especially in Uttar Pradesh, where hundreds of branches sprang up in districts like Mahoba, Jalaun, Sultanpur, and Farrukhabad. The company issued fake receipts to investors, but neither plots of land nor promised returns were ever delivered.

Following thousands of complaints, SEBI launched an investigation, prompting the registration of a criminal case (EOW Case No. 1/18) in Kanpur.

Meanwhile, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has filed a supplementary prosecution complaint, revealing that over ₹19,000 crore raised from investors in UP alone was laundered through shell companies. One such firm, MDB Housing, was allegedly controlled by Harsatinder Pal Singh Hayer — son-in-law of PACL’s founder and alleged kingpin Nirmal Singh Bhangoo. Hayer is currently in judicial custody.

Bhangoo, a former milkman from Punjab’s Barnala district, is believed to have used the scam’s proceeds to build a sprawling real estate empire. While several accused are already behind bars, a manhunt is underway for others still at large.

The investigation continues as agencies work to trace the missing funds and secure justice for the millions who lost their savings to one of India’s most audacious financial frauds.