12 in DVAC net for taking bribe

Sleuths attached to the Vellore Unit of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC) wing on Wednesday registered a case against 12 government officials, including nine from the Department of Local Fund Audit, for allegedly accepting bribes from the head masters (HM) of government and aided schools in Vellore Education District to clear the audit objections.

The DVAC officials seized Rs 84,000 unaccounted cash from the arrested officials.

Acting on a tip-off, a DVAC team led by Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) M Balasubramanian raided the Government Muslim Higher Secondary School on Tuesday, where the audit team was present to verify the accounts and utilisation of financial assistance given to the government and aided schools in the district.

The raid exposed the malpractice of the nine-member audit team led by Regional Accounts Officer Janardhanan. “The audit started on Monday. The team audited as many as 48 schools and collected a bribe of Rs 84,000 until we launched a surprise raid on Tuesday afternoon that went till about 10 pm. The officials collected anything around Rs 1,000 to Rs 5,000 from the HMs of each school to rectify the audit objections,” said a DVAC police officer.

Vigilance team sources said Junior Assistant of District Education Office Ashok Kumar helped the audit team collect the bribe amount from HMs, who came for a joint sitting for the audit on Tuesday.

Following a complaint from Inspector of District Inspection Cell Office Abdul Haq, the DVAC registered a case as per the provisions of Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) and forwarded it to the Tahsildar for enquiry, said Balasubramanian.