I-Monetary Advisory (IMA)
Claims application window is from Nov 25 to Dec 24
Rs 1,500 crore already disbursed out of Rs 2,900 crore claims, while property worth Rs 475 crore belonging to some police officers (not the IPS accused) and other officers has been attached by govt
BENGALURU:
The Karnataka government has brought some Diwali cheer to hundreds of depositors who lost their hard-earned money in the IMA scam by asking them to file their claims, starting November 25.
Announcing this at a presser on Friday, Special Officer and Competent Authority (IMA and other scam cases), IAS officer Harsh Gupta, said claims can be filed for a period of one month from November 25 to December 24, beyond which no claim applications will be accepted.
Gupta said, “The claims can be submitted online by depositors of IMA at any BengaluruOne, KarnatakaOne or Aatalji Jan Snehi Kendra centre with the help of the operator, or anywhere online on their own. The claim filing is a two-stage process. In the first stage, claimants have to provide personal details like mobile number, bank account number, etc. In the second stage, they have to provide scheme-wise deposit details.”
The application process
He said, “The depositors can file a claim using the Aadhaar or UTR (Unique Transaction Reference) number for a Re 1 transfer from their bank account to the Competent Authority bank account number: 6442116442, IFSC Code: HDFC0001748. Further, if their IMA-declared bank account is operational, they need not submit any documents regarding scheme enrolment like bond certificate, share certificate, etc. Else, they have to upload these documents. If the deposit details provided by applicants tally with the IMA-maintained database, they need not provide any receipts for deposits. Else, they need to upload deposit receipts. If there are any uploaded documents, the applicants need to get these attested through their jurisdictional tahsildar within another 60 days beyond the last date; i.e., from December 24, 2020 to February 24, 2021.”
As per Gupta, those who file claims using the Aadhaar OTP or UTR number for a Re 1 transfer from non-IMA declared bank accounts will be required to do additional authentication to be eligible for receiving the claim amount, either through Aadhaar biometrics or by sending Re1 from an IMA- declared bank account within 60 days of the last date. Beyond 60 days, they will have to authenticate themselves with alternative documents like DL, EPIC, etc. , before the Competent Authority.
“All collected details like mobile number, bank account number, PAN, Aadhaar number, client ID, deposit details will be validated in real time with the corresponding database. Name and photo match will be done through software for faster processing. The name is matched between IMA records and Aadhaar and bank remitter data, while the photo is matched from Aadhaar, IMA records and a live captured photo. If the depositor is dead or hospitalized, the claim application can be filed by the nominee or legal heir supported with necessary documents like a death/hospitalisation/legal heir certificate,” Gupta said.
He clarified, “Depositors are being informed in advance about the claim commencement date so that they can be prepared. Apart from the media and public notices in newspapers, they are being individually informed through SMS, pre-recorded calls and post. They can obtain more details through the call centre (from 8 am to 8 pm) 08046885959, or the website http://imaclaims.kamataka.gov.in, or the email id splocaima20@gmail.com, or Whatsapp number 7975568880.”
How claims will be settled
Elaborating on how the claims will be processed, Gupta said, “Claims will be settled after the interim attached properties are confirmed by the Special Court, Bengaluru. For a speedy trial, an exclusive court for IMA has been set up. It is expected that a judgment for confirmation and subsequent auction may happen in the next 6 months. So far, property worth Rs 475 crore has been attached by the government of Karnataka. The claims amount is approximately Rs 2,900 crore, of which about Rs1,500 crore is estimated to get adjusted towards returns already received by depositors.”
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