ED raids post offices across Gujarat, finds misappropriation of over ₹18 cr govt funds
Updated: Dec 3rd, 2024
A major scam has been uncovered in government post offices in Gujarat, where public funds were misappropriated. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) conducted raids on 19 post offices in areas such as Gondal, Jamnagar, Ravalwadi, and Chotila.
According to official ED sources, cases related to the misuse of government funds were discovered at Gujarat’s post offices.
Several FIRs have been registered with the ACB (Anti-Corruption Bureau) and CBI (Central Bureau of Investigation). It was found that sub-postmasters had fraudulently re-opened closed recurring deposit accounts and misappropriated a total of ₹18.60 crore, embezzling government funds.
In Gondal Division, the sub-postmaster of the Mengni Sub Post Office was found to have embezzled ₹9.97 crore between October 16, 2019, and November 21, 2022.
The fraud was carried out by manipulating the government software (SAP) tool to manually upload false payment details. In Ravalwadi Post Office, fraudulent activities were also reported, where previously closed recurring accounts were re-opened in the names of different account holders with fabricated forms.
The modus operandi of the fraudsters included creating bogus closure forms for accounts that were supposedly closed multiple times, and showing these as new investments under a different scheme.
Additionally, personal details of customers were misused to open new accounts under false pretenses, without actually opening the accounts for the customers.
In the Surajkuji Post Office in Jamnagar Division, the sub-postmaster used forged documents to defraud the government of ₹2.94 crore by manipulating postal savings and postal deposit accounts, resulting in ₹1.57 crore in fraudulent transactions.
The scale of this scam is so massive that the involvement of many other postal officers is coming to light. According to details from Gondal, it is revealed that two years ago, the postmaster at Mengni was involved in another fraud, amounting to ₹10 crore.
The fraudsters used the embezzled funds to purchase land and other assets. After the shift to online financial transactions at post offices, the fraudsters exploited vulnerabilities in the system, carrying out online entries to perpetuate the scam.
The investigation is still ongoing, and the full extent of the scam is yet to be uncovered.
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