Nailed

Almost a month after The Sunday Express first exposed how crores meant for the homeless in last year’s Bihar floods were siphoned off b...

Almost a month after The Sunday Express first exposed how crores meant for the homeless in last year’s Bihar floods were siphoned off by a nexus of officials and contractors, the government has decided to act.

The Bihar Vigilance Investigation Bureau today arrested five people after it registered an FIR against 26, including high-profile former Patna District Magistrate Gautam Goswami. Goswami, who was honoured by Time magazine as an Asian hero—for, ironically, his flood relief work—had gone on national TV after the reports in The Sunday Express and The Indian Express (CLICK FOR DETAILED REPORTS) to deny any wrongdoing.

Despite repeated attempts, Goswami was not available for comment today and a spokesman for his employers, Sahara Group, said, from Lucknow, that he had ‘‘gone on long leave day before yesterday.’’

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Those arrested today include: Sanjay Kumar Jha, manager of IDBI Bank in Patna where a fake account was being run, employee Shailendra Kumar; then director of the Bihar Small Scale Industries Corporation (BSSIC) Mukteshwar Prasad who is now a director with the Industries department, his employee Amlendu Choudhury; and the then Additional District Magistrate (Patna) Basudeo Prasad who was relief coordinator.

Their premises were raided, Additional Director General of the Vigilance Bureau Neelmani told PTI. And the raids will continue leading to more arrests.

The FIR was lodged under various sections of Indian Penal Code and Criminal Procedure Code charging Goswami and others with fraud, forgery, siphoning off of government funds by entering into criminal conspiracy with the owners of some fake firms.

‘‘On investigation, all the accused have been prima facie found to be involved in the swindle of government funds worth several crores meant for relief,’’ Neelmani was quoted as having said.

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Goswami was the nodal officer for relief operations during the floods—in which 800 had died and lakhs lost their homes—and The Sunday Express series exposed how the nearly Rs 18 crore he paid to the government-run Bihar State Small Industries Corporation (BSSIC) never reached it.

It turned out that the money, in fact, was being credited into the account of Baba Satya Sai Industries (BSSI), a shadowy firm with the same initials as the government corporation. As for the official BSSIC, it said that it had supplied material worth only Rs 22 lakh and had so far been paid just Rs 13 lakh.

Investigation revealed that Baba Satya Sai was, in fact, a phantom firm floated by contractor Santosh Jha, a close aide of RJD MP and former Chief Minister Rabri Devi’s brother Sadhu Yadav. Santosh Jha’s fake account was with IDBI Bank. He was a candidate for the Assembly elections on Ram Vilas Paswan’s Lok Janshakti Party ticket.

Looting the taxpayer in the name of the poor

		Since April 24, The Sunday Express and The Indian Express have reported: • Goswami paid nearly Rs 18 crore in flood relief to govt firm which denies having received it • Money went to shady firm with same initials as govt dept • Relief records were fudged: truck was shown setting off with sattu when it delivered polythene bags; Rs 11 lakh was shown as money for tea and snacks at an airport restaurant for flood relief crew • Cash flowed from DM to contractor Santosh Kumar Jha, an aide of then Chief Minister Rabri Devi’s brother Sadhu Yadav • Contractor Jha built fortune under RJD • Police seized seven new cars from Jha in Jan, all acquired after the flood • Centre asked Bihar govt to explain why Goswami was allowed to quit job without OK, join Sahara • Bihar govt confirms Express reports, says it’s exploring similar scams in other districts CLICK FOR DETAILED REPORTS