A division bench headed by Chief Justice V Gopala Gowda entrusted the CBI to probe the case on a petition filed by the All India Networks' Welfare Trust.
Asking the CBI to file its first status report on the investigation within three months, the high court also directed the Odisha Crime Branch police, which was probing the case for the last three years, to cooperate with the central investigating agency.
The Trust had approached the court seeking return of money invested by its members in the companies.
The petitioner had submitted a list of person who had invested money in Kanpur and Mumbai-based multi-level marketing companies reported to have been run by Bollywood filmmaker Nasser Khan and his associates.
According to Odisha police sources, at least two lakh investors, mostly from Balasore and Bhadrak districts have invested over Rs 1000 crore in the company.
Nasser was arrested over two years ago by Odisha Police in the chit fund case, but was later granted bail by the high court.
But following directions, he and seven of his company directors have surrendered their passports to the before the court.
The Odisha crime branch police have frozen bank accounts of Nasser
