Patiala coop society secretary booked for siphoning off fertiliser bags

The accused, Ram Kumar, who was posted at the Dudhan Sadhan Cooperative Society in Patiala, was already placed under suspension after the fertiliser bags were found missing in March 2020

Patiala police have booked a secretary of a cooperative society for allegedly siphoning off bags of DAP (di-ammonium phosphate) fertiliser and urea worth ₹3.95 lakh.

The case was registered against the secretary on Thursday after the cooperative department completed an inquiry into the missing DAP.

The accused, Ram Kumar, who was posted at the Dudhan Sadhan Cooperative Society, was already placed under suspension after the fertiliser bags were found missing in March 2020. The case was registered on Thursday after the cooperative department completed an inquiry.

The department found that during his posting, the accused allegedly bungled 1,623 bags of DAP and 937 bags of urea, police said in its report.

“The department submitted its report after carrying a detailed verification of the record and physical audit of bags at godown,” police said.

A case has been registered under Section 409 (criminal breach of trust by public servant) of the Indian Penal Code.

Recently, the enforcement team of the agriculture department confiscated 273 bags of DAP fertiliser from a private godown in Samana. The bags were stacked illegally as owner failed to produce bills.