**Executive Summary**
This report details the refund process for depositors of four Sahara Group Cooperative Societies following a Supreme Court order to transfer funds from the "Sahara-SEBI Refund Account" to the Central Registrar of Cooperative Societies. The process is managed through a dedicated digital portal, with a current disbursement limit of ₹50,000 per verified claimant. The Supreme Court has extended the deadline for the completion of these refund disbursements to December 31, 2026.
**Key Points / Main Content**
**Legal and Regulatory Framework**
* The cooperative societies operate under the Multi-State Cooperative Societies (MSCS) Act, 2002, and are accountable to their members and the Central Registrar of Cooperative Societies (CRCS).
* Following a Supreme Court order dated March 29, 2023, an initial ₹5,000 crore was transferred to the CRCS for disbursement to genuine depositors.
* The Supreme Court recently ordered an additional transfer of ₹5,000 crore from the "Sahara-SEBI Refund Account" to facilitate further refunds.
**Eligible Entities**
* The refund process applies specifically to four societies:
* Sahara Credit Cooperative Society Ltd., Lucknow
* Saharayn Universal Multipurpose Society Ltd., Bhopal
* Humara India Credit Cooperative Society Ltd., Kolkata
* Stars Multipurpose Cooperative Society Ltd., Hyderabad
**Disbursement Mechanism**
* An online portal (https://mocrefund.crcs.gov.in) was launched on July 18, 2023, for digital and paperless claim submissions.
* A re-submission portal was established on November 15, 2023, to address applications with identified deficiencies.
* Payments are deposited directly into the Aadhaar-seeded bank accounts of genuine depositors upon verification of identity and deposit proof.
* Current disbursements are capped at ₹50,000 per genuine depositor.
**Supervision and Progress**
* The process is supervised by Justice R. Subhash Reddy (Former Supreme Court Judge) with the assistance of Amicus Curiae Shri Gaurav Agarwal.
* As of February 2026, approximately ₹8,783.55 crore has been disbursed to 40,33,448 investors.
* The portal has recorded over 1.45 crore applications and 4.06 crore individual claims.
**Impact Analysis**
**Genuine Depositors / Investors**
**Impact**
They are eligible to recover their legitimate dues through a transparent, digital process. Currently, they can receive up to ₹50,000 directly into their bank accounts.
**Action Required**
Submit claims via the CRCS-Sahara refund portal with proof of identity and deposits; if an application is flagged for deficiencies, they must use the re-submission portal to correct and re-file.
**Central Registrar of Cooperative Societies (CRCS)**
**Impact**
The CRCS is responsible for managing the transferred funds and executing the disbursement modalities as directed by the court.
**Action Required**
Work in consultation with the court-appointed supervisor to refine payment modalities and manage the processing of millions of digital claims.
**Justice R. Subhash Reddy and Amicus Curiae**
**Impact**
They serve as the oversight body to ensure the refund process remains transparent and compliant with judicial orders.
**Action Required**
Monitor and supervise the identification of genuine depositors and the subsequent disbursement of funds by the CRCS.
Key Entities Referenced
CRCS-Sahara refund portal: An online platform launched for depositors of four Sahara Group cooperative societies to submit claims for the refund of their legitimate deposits.
Multi-State Cooperative Societies (MSCS) Act, 2002: The primary legislation governing the functioning, management, and accountability of the cooperative societies involved in the refund process.
Central Registrar of Cooperative Societies (CRCS): The regulatory authority responsible for supervising the disbursement of funds to genuine depositors of the Sahara Group.
Sahara-SEBI Refund Account: The source fund from which the Supreme Court directed the transfer of money to the CRCS for depositor payouts.
Justice R. Subhash Reddy: Former Judge of the Supreme Court appointed to supervise and monitor the entire refund disbursement process to ensure transparency.
Ministry of Cooperation
Refund Status of Money in Sahara Cooperatives
Posted On: 17 MAR 2026 4:46PM by PIB Delhi
Cooperative societies registered under the provisions of the Multi-State Cooperative Societies (MSCS)
Act, 2002 function as autonomous cooperative organisations and accountable to their members. The multi-
State cooperative societies are required to function as per the provisions of Multi-State Cooperative
Societies Act, 2002 and rules framed there under read with approved bye-laws of the Society which
includes the roles and powers of the members, Board, General Body of the society and Central Registrar
of Cooperative Societies (CRCS).
As per the provisions of Section 49 of the MSCS Act, 2002, the business matters such as to admit
members, to accept the deposits and investing the same and staff matters including payment of salary to
them, etc. fall under the powers and functions of the board of the society and the day to day management
of the society fall under the powers and functions of the Chief Executive of the society as per the
provisions of Section 52 of the MSCS Act, 2002.
Further, In an Interlocutory Application filed by the Ministry of Cooperation in WP (C) No.191/2022
(Pinak Pani Mohanty vs UoI & ors.), the Hon’ble Supreme Court on 29.03.2023 inter alia ordered that:
“(i) Out of the total amount of Rs. 24,979.67 Crores lying in the “Sahara-SEBI Refund Account”, Rs.
5000 Crores be transferred to the Central Registrar of Cooperative Societies, who, in turn, shall disburse
the same against the legitimate dues of the depositors of the Sahara Group of Cooperative Societies,
which shall be paid to the genuine depositors in the most transparent manner and on proper identification
and on submitting proof of their deposits and proof of their claims and to be deposited in their respective
bank accounts directly.
(ii) The disbursement shall be supervised and monitored by Justice R. Subhash Reddy, Former Judge of
this Court with the able assistance of Shri Gaurav Agarwal, learned Advocate, who is appointed as
Amicus Curiae to assist Justice R. Subhash Reddy as well as the Central Registrar of Cooperative
Societies in disbursing the amount to the genuine depositors of the Sahara Group of Cooperative
Societies. The manner and modalities for making the payment is to be worked out by the Central Registrar
of Cooperative Societies in consultation with Justice R. Subhash Reddy, Former Judge of this Court and
Shri Gaurav Agarwal, learned Advocate.”
In compliance of the Hon’ble Supreme Court’s Order dated 29.03.2023, an Online Portal “CRCS-Sahara
refund portal” https://mocrefund.crcs.gov.in has been launched on 18.07.2023 for submission of claims by
the genuine depositors of four Multi-State Cooperative Societies of Sahara Group, namely; Sahara Credit
Cooperative Society Ltd., Lucknow, Saharayn Universal Multipurpose Society Ltd., Bhopal, Humara
India Credit Cooperative Society Ltd., Kolkata and Stars Multipurpose Cooperative Society Ltd.,
Hyderabad for refund of their legitimate deposits. Entire process of disbursement is digital and paperless
and carried out under the supervision and monitoring of Justice R. Subhash Reddy, Former Judge of
Hon’ble Supreme Court with the assistance of Shri Gaurav Agrawal, Amicus Curiae.Applications received on the Portal are processed in transparent manner, on proper identification and on
submitting proof of their identity and deposits. The payment is deposited directly in Aadhaar seeded bank
account of the genuine depositors. Presently, payment upto Rs. 50,000/- is being disbursed to each genuine
depositor of the Sahara Group of Cooperative Societies against verified claims through Aadhaar seeded
Bank account. In case of any deficiency found in the application of the depositor on the portal,
deficiencies are conveyed to the depositors for re-submission of their application through the re-
submission portal, which has been launched on 15.11.2023.
As of February, 2026, 1,45,15,611 applications and 4,06,25,476 claims made by the investors on the
CRCS-Sahara refund portal. An amount of Rs. 8,783.55 crore has been disbursed to 40,33,448 investors of
Sahara Group of Cooperative Societies.
The Hon’ble Supreme Court has ordered that additional amount of Rs. 5,000 crore be transferred from
‘Sahara-SEBI Refund Account’ to Central Registrar of Cooperative Societies and granted extension for
disbursement of refund to the depositors upto 31.12.2026. The entire refund process to investors is carried
out in compliance with the orders of the Hon’ble Supreme Court.
This information was given by Union Minister for Home and Cooperation Shri Amit Shah in a written
reply in Lok Sabha.
******
AK/AP
(Release ID: 2241260) Visitor Counter : 127
Read this release in: Urdu , ही