Chandigarh: Cop, home guard held for siphoning off ₹1 crore

2019 salary scam: Accused used to deposit excess salary in accounts of cops under fake entries and later recover a part of it from them

A Chandigarh Police personnel and a home guard volunteer have been arrested in the ₹1.1 crore salary scam that had rocked the police department in 2019.

The accused in police custody on Saturday. They were posted in police’s salary branch when they embezzled the money. (HT Photo)

The cop, Balwinder Singh, a junior assistant with the UT Police, was the in-charge of the salary branch back then, with Surjit Singh, a home guard volunteer, also posted there.

“ ₹1.1 crore were siphoned off by the two accused and transferred to the accounts of various police personnel. An audit pointed out 161 such accounts that received extra salary through fraudulent means,” said superintendent of police (SP, Crime) Manoj Kumar Meena.

“The surplus amount has been recovered and more arrests are likely,” the police official added.

Anonymous complaint exposed scam

It was an anonymous complaint that blew the lid off of the scam. The complaint spurred the checking of salaries of the police personnel for December 2019 and excess deposits were discovered in 35 such accounts.

Following the revelation, a case was registered under Sections 420, 468, 471 and 120B of the Indian Penal Code and Sections 13(1)(b) & 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act on February 25, 2020.

The crime branch constituted a special investigation team (SIT), and a special audit for 2015 to 2020 was conducted by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) on the request of the police department.

The audit was completed and submitted around 10 days back, pointing out excess payments amounting to ₹1.1 crore.

The two accused were nabbed on Saturday and produced before a court. Balwinder was remanded to three-day custody and Surjit to one day.

Modus operandi

Investigation revealed that Balwinder Kumar, the then in-charge of the A4 Branch, dealt with the salaries of constables and head constables of Chandigarh Police. Surjit Singh was attached with the branch as an assistant.

The accused would deposit excess salary in the accounts of police personnel under fake entries of conveyance and food allowances, among others.

After depositing the amount, Surjit would act as the conduit to recover most of it from the account holder through a prior understanding.