Probe finds 3 employees guilty; recommends vigilance inquiry

Akash Ghai

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Tribune News Service

Mohali, June 29

The inquiry into the Rs 2.05 crore salary scam has held three employees — Tarun Bhagirath, a clerk; Mehar Singh, a retired senior assistant; and Shubh Karan, junior assistant — of the Punjab School Education Board responsible for fraud.

In his report (a copy of which is with The Tribune), inquiry officer BL Gupta has suspected the involvement of several employees of the board, including certain senior officials, the government audit department and public sector bank.

He has recommended that the matter be entrusted to the Vigilance Department or to lodge an FIR with the police against named/unnamed officials. 

The inquiry officer has also recommended a departmental inquiry against the officials concerned of the establishment/salary section to unearth their respective roles in the scam.

Indicating that the scam could turn out to be much bigger, the inquiry officer has stated ‘there are reasons to believe that there is definitely more than meets the eye… Certainly, Tarun Bhagirath is not alone in this racket and the role of other beneficiaries needs further probe’.

He stated that several records and documents were not made available to him during the inquiry.

He observed that the role of at least 29 officials (who had been posted in the salary section/accounts branch between 2008-2014) including senior ones like Avinash Chand Puri (deputy secretary, Finance and Development Officer), Janak Raj Mehrok (FDO), Herdev Singh (FDO) and Gurtej Singh (FDO) needs to be probed, if so decided by the board.

A mention of a list of 128 false transactions amounting to several lakhs of rupees (with all details) is also there in the report.

The scam had come to light when the board’s secretary had pointed out suspicious financial transactions in the accounts. 

Then, it was found that the payment of arrears on account of dearness allowance to 19 employees of the board was being disbursed in cash — instead of the authorised way of payment by cheque — by Tarun Bhagirath, a clerk posted in accounts branch. 

On further probing the matter, it was found that Bhagirath had been manipulating the figures showing the grand total of the payable amount in the contingency bills and thereafter getting these transferred either in his own account or the false accounts got opened by him in the name of his relatives or colleagues.

PSEB chairperson Dr Tejinder Kaur Dhaliwal confirmed that she had received the inquiry report. “We are in the process of gathering certain facts. I will be able to comment only after going through the details of the report and other facts,” she said.