Steno, 2 conductors in Vigilance net for fraud

Bathinda, September 25

A team of the Vigilance Bureau (VB) arrested a stenographer and two conductors posted with the Punjab Road Transport Corporation (PRTC), Bathinda depot, for a fraud with the corporation and private contractors.

VB officials said acting on a complaint by Ajmer Singh, a resident of Guru Nanak Nagari, Malout, they conducted an investigation which indicted stenographer Yashpal Goyal

and conductors Pradeep Kumar and Baljit Singh.

The complainant alleged that the depot had conducted an auction of 17 shops located near the Bathinda bus stand. As per the prescribed rules of the corporation as well as the state government, the interested parties were required to deposit refundable security fee to the tune of Rs 10,000 per shop to the cashier and this amount was to be returned to the unsuccessful bidders after the auction process.

Harpal Singh, Mahesh Singh, Jagdish Kumar and Surinder Kumar had deposited Rs 10,000 each to conductor Pradeep Kumar and he had issued temporary receipts to the bidders. However, after the completion of the auctioning process, the security amount was not returned to the unsuccessful bidders.

A VB spokesperson said the amount was neither shown in the cashier’s register nor deposited in the government treasury. A case has been registered at the VB police station, Bathinda, under Sections 409, 420, 465, 467, 468, 471 and 120B of the IPC to probe the allegations of embezzlement. Further investigation in the matter is underway. — TNS