Srinagar, Jul 03 (KNO): Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) on Thursday said to have presented a chargesheet against the then ZEO Tangdhar Kupwara & other officials for misappropriation of scholarship funds meant for Pahari speaking & Gujjar Bakerwal students during 2010-2011.
“On receipt of information about the allegations of fraud/ embezzlement in disbursement of scholarship Funds meant for Pahari speaking/ Gujjar-Bakerwal students in Education Zone, Tangdhar District Kupwara for year 2010-11, a verification was conducted by VOK (Now ACB Kashmir ) which revealed that during the year 2010-11, then ZEO Tangdhar namely Mohammad Ashraf Bhat; then dealing Clerk namely Mohammad Ashraf Paswal and other officials under a well-knit conspiracy, by abuse of their official positions, dishonestly and fraudulently inflated the figures of beneficiary students and thus obtained the excess funds from CEO Kupwara on account of Gujjar/Bakerwal and Pahari speaking student scholarships and misappropriated the excess funds so obtained,” a spokesman said in a statement issued to the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO).
Accordingly, ACB said that a case under FIR number 32/2018 under Section 5(1)(c), 5(1)(d) r/w 5(2) of Jammu and Kashmir Prevention of Corruption Act, Samvat 2006 and Section 468, 471, 120-B RPC was registered in Police Station Vigilance Organization Kashmir (Now ACB) and the investigations into the misappropriation/ embezzlement of scholarship funds during 2010-2011 was set into motion.
“Investigation conducted has established that accused public Servants Mohammad Ashraf Bhat (then In-charge Zonal education Officer Tangdhar), Mohammad ashraf Paswal (then Junior Assistant in the office of Zonal Education Officer Tangdhar), Razia Bano (then Junior Assistant in the office of Zonal Education Officer Tangdhar) and Shafiqa Rafiq (then Zonal Gender Coordinator in the office of Zonal Education Officer Tangdhar) during the year 2010-11, have by way of abuse of their official positions in furtherance of criminal conspiracy hatched among themselves inserted fictitious names in the disbursement registers, to whom scholarship was fraudulently shown disbursed was actually misappropriated,” the statement reads.
“That by doing so the accused Public servants caused misappropriation of an amount of Rs 8,30,200 (Rupees Eight Lakh Thirty thousand Two hundred) meant for scholarship of Pahari Speaking and Gujjar-Bakerwal Students of Education Zone Tangdhar, conferring undue pecuniary gains upon themselves with corresponding loss to the state exchequer which constitute the offence of criminal misconduct as defined under section 5(1)(c), 5(1)(d) r/w section 5(2) J&K Prevention of Corruption Act. Samvat; 2006 and other offences of forgery ,using forged documents,onspiracy etc under section 468, 471, 120-B RPC, which were made out and established against accused public servants,” it added.
“Investigations conducted have revealed that over 600 Fictitious names of the students belonging to Pahari Speaking category in Scholarship Disbursement Registers were made by accused persons on whose name funds were withdrawn & misappropriated. Whereas above 150 Fictitious names of the students belonging to Gujjar & Bakerwal category in Scholarship Disbursement Registers were made by accused persons on whose name funds were fraudulently shown disbursed but were misappropriated,” the spokesman said.
The investigations conducted also revealed that accused ZEO & other officials got signatures on utilization certificates / Expenditure Statements of both Pahari Speaking and Gujjar-Bakerwal Scholarship at the hands of then MLA Tangdhar and Member Advisory Board, fraudulently by misleading them that scholarship has been distributed among Bonafide students only, he said.
Investigations conducted has also revealed that one of the accused, Junior Assistant Mohammad Ashraf Paswal has directly received an amount of ₹5,00,000 which has been credited by him in his personal account maintained in J&K Bank Branch Tangdhar and later withdrawn in cash by him in ten instalments of ₹50,000 each and then misappropriated. It is pertinent to mention here that ACB has already charge-sheeted Mohammad Ashraf Paswal then Junior Assistant in the office of Zonal Education Officer Tangdhar in Disproportionate assets case which is also undergoing trial before Anti-corruption court Baramulla.
After completion of investigations and after obtaining prosecution sanction against accused public servants, a chargesheet against all four accused persons including the then ZEO Tangdhar Kupwara and others was presented before court of Addl Special Judge Anti-Corruption Court Baramulla for judicial determination. All accused persons were presented before court in custody with challan and were released on personal bond, the statement said, adding that next date of hearing has been fixed by court for 10-09-2025—(KNO)