An accountant in Bokaro, India, has been arrested for allegedly siphoning off over Rs 6 crore from the treasury through fraudulent salary withdrawals, prompting a high-level investigation into the massive embezzlement scheme.
Key Points
- An accountant in Bokaro is accused of embezzling over Rs 6 crore from the treasury's salary disbursement account.
- The accused accountant allegedly made fraudulent withdrawals in the names of multiple individuals, including a retired havildar.
- A four-member inquiry team has been formed to investigate the treasury fraud, alongside a separate state-level investigation.
- The fraudulent withdrawals occurred over a 25-month period, exploiting vulnerabilities in the e-Kuber Bill Management System.
- The accused accountant has been arrested, and strict legal action is promised against all those found guilty in the Bokaro treasury embezzlement case.
Investigations have revealed that more than Rs 6 crore was allegedly withdrawn from the treasury's salary disbursement account in Bokaro district by a police department accountant, an official said on Friday.
Bokaro Deputy Commissioner (DC), Ajay Nath Jha, said that the amount was earlier reported to be Rs 4.29 crore, but the investigation has now revealed that it has increased to more than Rs 6 crore.
"So far, it has come to light that the accused accountant withdrew more than Rs 6 crore in the names of Ram Naresh Singh, Upendra Singh, S Kumar and several others. Considering the seriousness of the matter, I have constituted a four-member inquiry team under the chairmanship of the Additional Development Commissioner," the DC said.
At the same time, a separate investigation is also underway at the state level, he said.
"The case of illegal withdrawal from the treasury is extremely serious. It has been taken up under the zero-tolerance policy. The investigation is ongoing, and strict legal action will be taken against all those found guilty," he added.
Arrest and Initial Findings
The accused, Kaushal Kumar Pandey, was arrested on Tuesday following an FIR lodged by treasury officer Gulab Chand Oraon at Bokaro Steel City police station.
Initially, the case came to light regarding the withdrawal of Rs 3.15 crore from the salary head of a sub-inspector.
Later, an inquiry at the drawing and disbursing officer (DDO) level on the e-Kuber Bill Management System revealed that Rs 4.29 crore was fraudulently withdrawn 63 times over 25 months (from November 2023 to March 2026) under the salary head in the name of Havildar Upendra Singh, who had retired in July 2016.
Pandey admitted that he had continued to withdraw the money by editing the date of birth and account number of the retired havildar in the portal.
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