Team Herald
MARGAO: Despite the passage of three years since the Mahila Cooperative Credit Society scam in Marcel came to light, victims are still awaiting justice, with the alleged fraudsters yet to face consequences. The Rs 8–9 crore scam left numerous women depositors in financial distress, as no funds have been recovered, and those accused remain out on bail.
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The victims expressed frustration, stating that repeated meetings with the Chief Minister have yielded no results. They have urged the government to seize the assets of the Chairperson and the Board of Directors, alleging that these individuals were directly involved in the fraudulent disbursement of loans that have since disappeared without a trace.
On Thursday, a group of the victims met South Goa MP Capt Viriato Fernandes, and asked him to intervene to ensure that the officials of the credit society are taken to task, and their funds returned to them by liquidating the assets of the fraudsters. Viriato assured that he would push for a probe into the matter on priority. “We were cheated in 2021, its 2024 now. Our funds have not been recovered. We had approached the CM many times, but nothing has been done till now,” said Cynthia Gomes, one of the depositors. The assets of the alleged scamsters have reportedly been filed with an auditor, and are being assessed, she added.
The victims, all women who had lost their life savings, had held multiple protests to draw the government’s attention to their plight, but lamented that no action had been forthcoming.
In February this year, the State government had announced that investigations revealed that the scam’s scale could be as high as Rs 18 crore, and not Rs 8 crore as believed earlier. An inquiry officer had been appointed to investigate the case and was tasked with ensuring that all depositor funds are recovered from the society by December 2024.
