Chandigarh, October 28: The Capt Amarinder Singh government is looking into 1.08 lakh cases of embezzlement, unsanctioned expenditure and irregular cuts imposed while making payments, a majority of these in the Local Bodies Department, during the 10-year Akali-BJP rule.
The local audit wing of the Finance Department has recommended that strict action be initiated against erring officers under the Punjab Civil Services (Punishment and Appeal) Rules.
It is learnt that a report of these irregularities was sent to the state government so that it could be presented during the Cabinet meeting on October 16. However, the report was not tabled due to “technical reasons”. The Finance Department has been asked to frame a new agenda for tabling this report, which will be presented during the next Cabinet meeting.
Sources say since the maximum cases (43,883) where anomalies were detected by auditors in the past 10 years are related to local bodies, the minister concerned, Navjot Singh Sidhu, has been demanding that the government take action against guilty officers.
These cases, detected in municipal corporations and councils, Improvement Trusts, Sewerage Board, five state-run universities, Punjab School Education Board, zila parishads, panchayat samitis and market committees, were reportedly brought to the notice of then state government by the Local Audit Department. For years, these anomalies, including cases of embezzlement of government funds, were allegedly overlooked, even though rules stipulate that all such issues raised by auditors have to be addressed and remedial action initiated within a time frame.
During the decade in question (2007-17), Rs 2,796-crore works in these departments were audited.
As per data available with The Tribune, 72,143 cases had been overlooked for over 10 years, 15,614 for 10 years and 21,044 cases of objections had not been addressed for less than five years. In many of these cases, certificates had been issued by the departments to initiate legal action against the accused, but no follow-up was done.
When contacted, former Local Bodies Minister Anil Joshi said he was always proactive in bringing to book those who committed irregularities. “No one found guilty was spared. I don’t know of any such list of huge pending cases where auditors pointed out irregularities,” he said.
News Source: http://www.tribuneindia.com
