Heera Group of Companies - The 2007 to 2012 Story

Initial Stage of Business - Share Holders:  Share Certificates were issued to Investors from 2007 to 2012 and today’s investors were then addressed as “Share Holders.” From the time the company started up until 2012, Investors were told that the company is a public limited company and that the investors were actual Share Holders of the Company.

Heera GoC began to do well in the way of pulling in investments as almost all of the employed MEs, DSAs, and In-House Staff Members of HG were Muslims wearing the Islamic label on, i.e., Skull Cap, Beard, etc.  The visual in-house made an impact and people started rolling in as Share Holders.

The MEs (Marketing Executives) and DSAs (Direct Selling Agents) themselves were supposed to Invest in the company, and this investment brought about bank statements which were then displayed to every potential Investor.  These bank statements of MEs and DSAs proved to be the most powerful tool to induce more people into investing into Heera GoC.  Even regular Investors were lured in to work for Heera GoC as DSAs with a promised percentage of 1% to 3% of the total investment they bring in.

Salim Ansari (Mumbai Operator)

The whole system grew to become such that Operators (Branch Managers) were the head of the Branch/Location who used to manage several MEs, and these MEs had a free hand in recruiting DSAs under them.

Of note, it can be easily said that none, or only few, of these MEs or DSAs were officially recruited by any company that came under the banner of Heera Group of Companies.

Type of Staff & Commission Percentage
Operators/Branch Managers:  Up to 10%
ME (Marketing Executives):  3% to 5%
DSAs (Direct Selling Agents):  1% to 3%
In-House Office Staff Members:  Salary

DSAs had this opportunity to graduate and become an ME once he/she would bring in a total investment of 50 Lakhs to Heera GoC.

Salauddin Mahaldar (Mumbai Operator)

With time, Heera Group grew substantially fast by the way of collecting investment from the Muslim community.  Word of mouth was the main source of advertisement for Heera, the backdrop being the name of a not very well known female who supposedly was an Islamic Scholar and a Business Woman at the same time.  The opportunity for women in the Muslim community to work for an Islamic Company seemed to be dream come true, and quite a many female Investors were lured in to work as a DSA with Heera Group of Companies.  This created a cascading effect, which worked to bring in unimaginably huge investments into the company, but not without suspicions from the learned sect of the community.

Wisdom played in important role in spreading awareness among the existing DSAs, where questions were asked which the DSAs failed to answer.  Existing and potentially new Investors started asking Heera GoC workers for Company Balance Sheet, Profit & Loss Statements, Tax Documentations, etc.  Unable to answer these questions brought up to them, the DSAs would put these questions up to their MEs, and the MEs would put it up to their respective Operator/Branch Manager.

Abdul Rehman Shaikh & Ismail Shaikh

The In-House Staff Members of Heera GoC Branch Offices faced similar crisis.  They though had immediate access to their Branch Manager and so these Branch Managers then had put up these questions to Nowhera Shaikh and other Core Members of Heera GoC.  At this point in time, Nowhera Shaikh was an unknown face to public, still in the veil; even most of the MEs, DSAs, and In-House Staff Members could swear not to have seen her face.

The explanation passed down to the DSAs and In-House Staff Members of Heera GoC was that Heera GoC Factories, Manufacturing Units, Branch Offices, Outlets, etc, were mostly in Gulf Countries; UAE, Kuwait, etc.  This statement of theirs worked as a repellent for quite a few potential investors, but it still managed to pull in more Investments.  The DSAs who were mostly housewives before joining Heera GoC were too happy making a living out of the job, and the MEs were extremely satisfied with their handsome commissions, and so as long as work continued, nobody bothered to question the higher authorities of Heera GoC.

Time and again though, existing Share Holders were being warned of the scam.  The 36% return per annum was too good to be true for many of the friends and relatives of the existing Share Holders.  The pile of doubts was being flushed down the drain on a monthly basis on the day these Share Holders used to get their Dividends into their respective bank accounts.  Most of the Share Holders never bothered to listen to the warnings given to them by those who knew what a 36% return business could lead to in the future.

Investments started increasing every passing day, and so did the doubts and questions manage to persist.  The term “Trade Declarations” started being used where nothing actually was declared, but was considered to be the transfer of Dividends into the Share Holders accounts.  Both new and old Share Holders never did they get to know anything about the actual business of the company apart from mere statements made by the DSAs, MEs, and In-House Staff Members of Heera GoC that Heera GoC had most of their business back in the gulf.  Even though monthly dividends were deposited into the Share Holders’ accounts, the issue of providing suitable answers to ever-popping questions always kept the DSAs, MEs, and In-House Staff Members of Heera GoC troubled.

Soon enough, a dangerous question started making the rounds of the minds of almost all those involved with Heera Group of Companies, and the question was “Is Heera a Listed Public Limited Company? If yes, then why isn’t it listed on the Market?"

Share Certificate Issued Between 2007 to 2012

Nowhera Shaikh and other Core Members of Heera GoC came up with an suitable excuse for not being a Listed Public Limited Company.  They started telling the existing and New Share Holders that since Heera GoC is an Islamic Business Group and only wants to serve the Muslim Community, Heera has not gotten itself registered as a Listed Public Limited Company, and that one of the many conditions of being a Listed Public Limited company would mean that Heera would have to accept investments from non-Muslims as well, which was against their core agenda of helping only the Muslim Community only given that Heera’s motto was “Halal Trade” and “Interest Free World” on the lines of the Islamic Law.

A religious blackmail, this explanation did not go down well with quite a few investors who withdrew their money instantly, but the 36% per annum returns were enough for people to stick with the company and continue.  Of note is that most of the investment collected during this 5 to 6-year period of 2007 to 2012, were in cash.

How did Nowhera Shaikh start the Ponzi named Heera Group of Companies - Initial Stage

Before anything, Nohera Shaikh was a daughter of a vegetable vendor.  As she grew up, she started teaching small children how to read the Quran in various (female) madrassas in a Tirupati.  Later on, she started collecting money from the local people in her area promising them monthly payments at such an interest rate that would double the amount of the capital investment in a year’s time.  All of this was done without an office in a small remote town in Andhra.  Nowhera said that she deals in gold, and people trusted her as she was also involved in teaching kids how to read the Quran.

As the investments grew, the need to sustain it brought in more people to join in to become Core Members of Nowhera Shaikh’s so-called business, and so the business (Ponzi) began to expand.  Nowhera Shaikh's brothers Ismail Shaikh and Abdul Rahman Shaikh started to participate in helping Nowhera expand this so-called business.  Availability of money subsequently gave rise to the idea of actual gold trading, Ghana.

During those times, buying gold dust from Ghana, illegally exporting it to other countries, selling it for a margin, converting the profit into Gold, and bringing it back to India was a lucrative trade even though illegal.  Hawaala was used for money transactions in and out of India.  This Ghana Gold Trade was the initial business idea propagated against investments collected, which helped Nowhera Shaikh and her brothers and other family members establish a name for themselves.

The story Nowhera Shaikh and her aids put out was that Nowhera Shaikh owns a company named Heera Gold, and Heera Gold had a contract with Ghana government which helped them get gold in a cheaper rate from Ghana, i.e., 4.5% discount on the daily rate of gold in Ghana.  They would then sell the gold they purchased on a 1.5% discount from the day’s rate to renowned companies established in the Gulf, such as D-Damas and other credible gold refining companies.  They also used to mention that D-Damas specifically had a capacity to buy and process 500 kg of gold dust on a daily basis, and this made the business seem huge.

Nobody questioned as to why couldn’t a company such as D-Damas get into a similar contract with Ghana Government.  Nowhera Shaikh’s ability to mesmerize people played an important role in achieving success in inducing people to invest on her trade.  Ponzi took off, and the regular returns stopped all questions that could have risen.

Huge money started pouring in in the name of Ghana Gold Business, and the first of offices in the name of Heera Gold were opened in Mira Road, Thane, in the year 2007. One Mr. Farid was the incharge of this office.  In the year 2008, Salim Ansari (one of the first operators) opened an office in Bhindi Bazar.

Dr. Rizwan Shaikh used to work in that office, and his wife Roshanara worked as a Marketing Executive there.  In the year 2016 to 2017, Dr. Rizwan Shaikh’s son became an ME.  Nazneen of Jeddah is a Pakistani Citizen, who also has been with Heera Group since the beginning.

Until 2010, none of the companies that Nowhera Shaikh established were registered - Exposing the lie that Nowhera Shaikh had been stating all the while, "I have been doing this business for over 20 years."  Another lie was that she was an Aalima (Islamic Scholar), and the Doctrate in Business Management Philosophy also proved to be a lie.

Heera Gold News | Malegaon Case Bail Rejected | Abuzar Ansari, Salman Ansari

Heera Gold News - April 11, 2019 - In the Heera Group of Companies cases, the two Marketing Executives of Heera Group, Abuzar Ansari Mohd. Yousuf and Mohd. Salman Ansari Abuzar, applied for anticipatory bail which was rejected by Honorable Justice B.S. Mahajan (Additional Sessions Judge - 2), Malegaon.

The applicants' lawyer argued that both Abuzar Ansari Mohd. Yousuf and his son Mohd. Salman Ansari Abuzar were employees of Heera Group of Companies and that the investors who had invested through actually invested in the company, and being employees of a company, they (Abuzar Ansari and Salman Ansari) cannot be held liable if the company defaults in paying back its investors.

The public prosecutor argued that several other cases are registered against Heera Group of Companies in several cities throughout India, and that the Marketing Executives played a key role in inducing investment into the company by the way of convincing people to invest in the company.

After listening to the arguments of both sides, Honorable Justice B.S. Mahajan (Additional Sessions Judge - 2) rejected the bail application and the following is noted in his order dated April 11, 2019:

"There is substance in the argument advanced by the learned APP.  The investors are not acquainted with the company and believing the words of the applicants, they have invested their money. Now the applicants cannot avoid their liability.  It is pertinent to note that considering nature of the offence, custody of the applicants is essential.  Apparently, investors have been deceived for huge amount and for protecting their interest, thorough investigation is required and for that purpose custody of the applicants is essential.  Thus, I pass the following order:  Application is rejected."

Sources reveal that the Direct Selling Agents and Marketing Executives earned hefty commissions against investments that came to the company through them.  The Managing Director of Heera Group of Companies, Nowhera Shaikh, had been arrested on October 15, 2018, by CCS, Hyderabad, and there are more than 22 cases registered against her throughout India.

Heera Gold news update.