Morung Express News
Dimapur | April 6
Considering the gravity of increasing cases of fraudulent withdrawal of pension, the Government of Nagaland has constituted three Special Investigating Teams, two under the State Vigilance Commission and another under the State Police Department to investigate into the cases.
This was informed as per a clarification issued by the office of the Finance Commissioner in response to an item appearing in a section of the local press.
According to the Finance department the aforesaid SITs are carrying out extensive investigations into all the reported cases of fraudulent withdrawal of pension. Details of the ongoing investigations in this regard are given below. Since the investigations are still under progress, the department deemed fit that the names of the persons involved remain undisclosed at this stage.
The department stated that in the case number R.C.1/2000, the investigation by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) of vigilance has completed its verification by verifying 14,771 pensions as against 15,408 pensions. This exercise has resulted in stoppage of monthly pension payment to 1,064 numbers of illegal/bogus pension claims resulting in the financial savings of above Rs 12 crores per annum.
Relatively, 14 bogus/fraudulent pension claims are under investigation. (a) 6 (six) officials of the office of the Accountant General, Nagaland and 14(fourteen) private individuals have been charge-sheeted in the court of DC (Judicial) Dimapur.
It was also informed that authorization letters for payment to the bogus claims were seized by the SIT Vigilance. Through such timely detection and seizure of pension documents, an amount of Rs 48 Lakhs was stopped from being paid to “those scrupulous criminal elements” it was added.
Other details furnished stated that 31 fraudulent cases are under investigation. Charge sheet against 5 officers and staff of AG office has been forwarded to the court of the D.C. (Judicial) Dimapur. Through the detection and seizure of pension documents, an amount of Rs 66 Lakhs was stopped from being paid to those unscrupulous elements the department said. Also in the case no R.C.4/2004 165 cases are under investigation and about Rs 4.95 Crore was being stopped from being paid to the criminal elements due to the detection while under case no R.C.6/2004 charge sheet has been issued against an officer of the Khadi and Village Industries Board for attempting to bribe the Team Leader of SIT (Police Team).
It was further informed that the SIT (Police Team) is investigating about 750 cases (some more under scrutiny) and so far 8 cases have been registered.
Adding that the progress of the investigations are regularly reviewed by a committee headed by the Chief Secretary, the department stated that realizing the need to be ahead of unscrupulous elements, the system of check-list was introduced. “This has further been notified to the extent that this check list prepared by the Accountant General on a monthly basis is now required to be further confirmed by each head of Department before disbursement of Pension” the clarification stated.
