AIIMS Patna chief cashier arrested for criminal breach of trust

Gulam Shahbaz Alam, SHO of Phulwarisharif police station, said chief cashier Anurag Aman was arrested near AIIMS on Thursday

PATNA: The chief cashier of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Patna, was arrested on Thursday on charges of fraud and misappropriation of government funds amounting to ₹44.5 lakh.

The FIR was registered under sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) related to fraud, theft, dishonest misappropriation of property and criminal breach of trust

Gulam Shahbaz Alam, station house officer (SHO) of Phulwarisharif police station, said the chief cashier, Anurag Aman, was arrested near AIIMS on Thursday, a day after a first information report (FIR) was registered against him on a complaint received from the AIIMS administration.

The FIR was registered under sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) related to fraud, theft, dishonest misappropriation of property and criminal breach of trust.

According to people familiar with the matter, Aman allegedly held cash received from patients for up to three days before depositing it into the institute’s account. The irregularities were spotted during an internal audit by Piyush Anand, an accounts officer in the billing and registration section of the institute. When asked about it, Aman allegedly claimed he withheld the cash to address any exigencies related to patient refunds.

But he could not provide any formal approval from the competent authority. He was also unable to immediately produce the funds he was holding, prompting the accounts officer to escalate the matter.

An official said the chief cashier had indicated in the course of the inquiry that he invested the money in the stock market, but underlined that this aspect was being looked into.

The AIIMS-Patna spokesperson said that an employee had been placed on suspension following prima facie findings of fund misappropriation and that disciplinary proceedings had been initiated in accordance with institutional rules.

“It is also noted that the concerned employee has since returned the amount in question. However, the return of the amount does not preclude or affect the ongoing disciplinary process,” a statement issued by the spokesperson said.

It emphasised that the institute adheres to a zero-tolerance policy on financial misconduct.

The AIIMS statement, however, did not identify the employee concerned, the amount involved, the details of the inquiry, the inquiry timeline, or whether a police complaint had been filed.

The institute also did not respond to follow-up queries from Hindustan Times about the entire episode.

AIIMS-Patna executive director Raju Agarwal also did not respond to requests for comment via WhatsApp and email.