KENDRAPARA: A Gramin Dak Sevak was booked on Saturday after allegedly misappropriating around Rs 20 lakh from more than 50 customers at the riverside Baruna village post office under Rajkanika police limits in Kendrapara.
The accused, Asique Kumar Mahalik, has been missing since Wednesday. According to sources, the irregularities came to light recently when several depositors discovered that large sums had been withdrawn from their postal accounts without their knowledge. Mahalik reportedly siphoned off money from various postal savings schemes by forging depositors’ signatures and making unauthorised withdrawals from their passbooks.
Investigations revealed that Mahalik also adopted another method to embezzle funds, by failing to register deposited amounts in official postal ledgers, while entering the figures in customers’ passbooks to avoid suspicion.
“After receiving complaints from multiple account holders, we conducted a preliminary inquiry and found that the GDS had misappropriated deposits of many customers. Subsequently, an FIR was lodged at Rajkanika police station,” said postal inspector of Pattamundai branch post office Ankush Naskar.
Acting on the complaint, police registered a case against the accused under multiple sections of the BNS. “The accused is absconding. Raids are being conducted at possible hideouts to nab him,” said Rajkanika IIC Sanjay Kumar Mallick.