BENGALURU: Under pressure from BJP, the state government on Friday constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the alleged misappropriation of funds in the Karnataka Maharshi Valmiki Scheduled Tribes Development Corporation Ltd.
Under Additional Director General of Police (CID) Manish Kharbikar, the SIT will have three senior police officers. It will probe the allegations in corporation official Chandrashekar’s suicide note and a complaint filed by his wife. It will also probe the corporation’s complaint against some officials of the Union Bank of India. The bank has filed a complaint with the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to probe the cash transactions in question.
“The bank has declared the transactions in question as fraudulent after the irregularities came to light. To ensure a thorough investigation and swift identification of culprits, we have filed a formal complaint with the CBI. Additionally, three bank officials have been suspended, pending inquiry,” a statement from the bank said.
Chandrashekaran, who was working as a superintendent at the corporation’s head office in Bengaluru, committed suicide at his house in Shivamogga on May 26. In the note, he made serious allegations against his seniors and Tribal Welfare Minister N Nagendra over the fraudulent transfer of funds from the corporation’s bank account to anonymous accounts.
Over Rs 85 crore from the corporation’s account with the Union Bank of India, MG Road branch, Bengaluru, was allegedly transferred to some private accounts. The state government has suspended the corporation’s managing director and an accountant, pending a departmental inquiry. The BJP, however, has sought a CBI probe into the alleged misappropriation of funds. Leaders of the party have also sought Nagendra’s resignation. The corporation functions under his ministry.