Rajasthan govt officer accused of drawing ₹30 lakh salary in wife's name for fake job: Report

Pradhyuman Dixit reportedly secured work for companies and funnelled over ₹30 lakh to his wife, who was falsely employed without performing any duties.

A bizarre case of fraudulence recently made its way to Rajasthan as the anti-corruption bureau (ACB) reportedly registered a case against a senior officer of the state's information technology and communication department for allegedly drawing salaries illegally in his wife's name.

Dixit is also suspected of using his position to get his wife appointed in exchange for extending favours to the companies.(Hindustan Times file photo for representation)

The accused, Pradhyuman Dixit, joint director of Rajcomp Info Services Ltd, allegedly misused his position to secure work for two private companies engaged in government IT projects, showed his wife, Poonam Dixit, as an employee and got her monthly “salaries” into her account, even though she never worked for them, read a report by TOI.

Poonam was simultaneously shown as employed by both companies, during which more than ₹30 lakh was credited to her accounts, which is suspected as bribes disguised as wages for official favours in the allocation and clearance of government IT contracts.

What is the allegation?

The allegation against Poonam was that although she was an employee to both companies, she was not assigned any project.

The two companies kept depositing salaries into her different private bank accounts between 2019 and 2020. Throughout this period, she never went to the office," an official said, adding that a senior police officer was deputed by the ACB to investigate the case, the report added.

According to the FIR cited by TOI, Dixit was posted as the joint director of the data centre when the alleged crime took place.

Dixit is also suspected of using his position to get his wife appointed in exchange for extending favours to the companies, the report added citing sources.

The ACB is also probing whether Dixit personally verified his wife's attendance and approved her performance reports. The agency is examining related documents to verify the authenticity of these records.

Apart from Dixit, the FIR also named Rakesh Kumar Kamlesh, Poonam Dixit, and other employees under provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act and the Indian Penal Code for criminal conspiracy.

Rajasthan again

In a similar case in the state, a government official was arrested on Monday for allegedly accepting a bribe of ₹90,000 in Churu district, news agency PTI reported quoting officials.

According to the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB), a complainant alleged that Nirmal Soni, an assistant administrative officer posted at the Sardarshahar tehsil office, was demanding ₹1 lakh for facilitating the conversion of agricultural land.

Following the confirmation, acting on the directions of the ACB headquarters, the Jhunjhunu unit laid a trap on Monday, and Soni was caught red-handed taking ₹90,000 from the complainant.

The money was recovered from his trouser pocket, the officials said, adding that further interrogation and legal proceedings are underway.