Addressing the fourth meeting of the investors, advocate Chitragandha Ghose stated, ``In view of the compromise proposal forwarded by the company to the Madras High Court, it would be a wiser proposition that investors file individual complaints, if only to show their strength. "We want to put the criminal law in motion but there is no point in filing a criminal case now for if Natesan is arrested, investors will lose every chance to recover the principal amount the company has offered to pay back''.

In a circular to the high court, the company has put forth the offer to pay back investors in the Anubhav plantation scheme, the principal amount at an interest rate of 12 per cent per annum. The court has called for a general meeting on December 2 at Chennai to deliberate on the same.

According to Ghose, investors were not likely to know the truth of the defence put forth by Anubhav blaming the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) for the downslide till all documents concerned are not submitted to the court. ``Once those documents which are with the accused are produced in court, we'll compare them with the circulars issued by the company for the investors.

"If their defence is true, then we'll turn our eye to the SEBI. But if we have the evidence of the fraud, we'll initiate the required process," she said.

Sanjay Jain of the Association told the gathering that the association would also frame the compromise terms of the investors and present them at the December 2 discussion. Speaking to Express Newsline, Jain said 120 investors from the city had already enrolled as the association members and the number was likely to increase.

``Investments to the tune of Rs one lakh per family have been made in almost every scheme of Anubhav. While those falling in the retirement group have opted for short-term schemes, many others have gone in for the plantations,'' he said. Jain added that at least two members of the association along with the secretary and legal advisor Ghose would attend the December 2 meeting at Chennai.