Four officials of Haryana’s Welfare of Scheduled Castes and Backward Classes Department have been reportedly suspended for an alleged fraud of Rs.3.53 crore meant for post-matric scholarships (PMS) to be imparted to Scheduled Caste/Backward Caste students. The officials embezzled the money by changing the Aadhaar numbers of beneficiaries and transferring the money into forged Aadhaar-linked accounts.
Per a report by Bhartesh Singh Thakur in the Tribune, the scholarship money is given in every state to Scheduled/Backward Caste students studying in educational institutions within or outside the state. According to the report, the Department Director Sanjeev Verma has suspended assistants Ramdhari and Bilender Kumar, accountant-cum-clerk Surender Kumar and clerk Sanjeev Kumar after an inquiry report submitted by a committee led by department’s Chief Accounts Officer held the four of them responsible for the forgery.
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According to the report, the treasury had passed the bill on March 8 this year for Rs 3.53 crore. The first involved payment of Rs 1.71 crore for 170 students on February 13, and second of Rs 1.81 crore for 182 students on February 19. The inquiry committee reportedly found that the names of the institutes and courses, and students’ Aadhaar numbers were changed, while names of 170 students and their fathers remained the same.
Per the report, the suspended officials showed a large number of candidates having the same numbers. For instance, the report adds, mobile number *****42438 had 28 names against it, *****37396 had 44 and *****85237 24 names against it. In case of 182 students, for whom Rs 1.81 crore was sanctioned, Tribune reports that Aadhaar numbers had allegedly been changed.
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The inquiry report shared in the Tribune pointed out that those involved in this fraud were well aware of the system. The due process upto getting bills sanctioned by the treasury was duly followed, and forgery allegedly took place during the preparation of the list that was forwarded to the bank for payment. Funds are not transferred if the Aadhaar number is incorrect, incomplete, doesn’t exist or not linked with a bank, but in this case, as the report shows, the Aadhaar numbers mentioned existed and were linked with banks.
The complicity of educational institutes involved and possibility of fraud at DWO level has not been ruled out by the Committee incharge. A vigilance probe and a special audit by the Accountant General (Audit), Haryana, has reportedly been recommended, given the fact that Rs 236 crore has been distributed under PMS in the past three years. Neerja Shekhar, Principal Secretary, told the Tribune that, “Irregularities have been found and we are looking into these. We will take strict action.”