One of India’s most flamboyant tycoons, Subrata Roy, has been arrested after he surrendered to the police.
The Supreme Court had ordered the arrest of the Sahara group chief on Wednesday after he failed to appear before judges in a case of fraud.
Two Sahara firms are accused of raising 240bn rupees ($3.9bn; £2.3bn) through bonds that were found to be illegal.
Market regulators say Mr Roy failed to refund the money to millions of investors despite a court order.
He is expected to remain in custody until 4 March as the Supreme Court refused to take up his bail petition on Friday, saying it was “not urgent”.
“Mr Roy wilfully submitted himself before [the northern city of] Lucknow police. He is co-operating with all authorities,” his son, Seemanto Roy, told a press conference in Delhi.
Senior police official Habibul Hasan in Lucknow said the businessman would be produced before the magistrate soon.
Earlier on Friday, Mr Roy issued a statement saying he was not “absconding” from arrest after police in Lucknow said they had raided his house on Thursday, but failed to find him.
Mr Roy said he was indeed in Lucknow but had stepped out to consult doctors about his ailing mother.
On Wednesday, angry judges ordered the businessman’s arrest after his lawyer said the Sahara chief had been unable to appear in court since his 92-year-old mother was very unwell.
Mr Roy and his rags-to-riches life story is a household name in India.
His group, worth 682bn rupees ($11bn; £6.6bn), has businesses ranging from finance, housing, manufacturing, aviation and the media. It also has interests overseas – it owns New York’s landmark Plaza Hotel and London’s iconic Grosvenor House.
Sahara also sponsors the Indian hockey team and owns a stake in Formula One racing team, Force India.
With more than 1.1 million workers, the group is India’s biggest private sector employer.
News Source : BBC
