‘Commissioner asked to conduct departmental probe
BHOPAL : Department of commercial tax has ordered commissioner of departmental inquiry to conduct a departmental inquiry into the Indore excise scam.
A scam to the tune of Rs 42 crore took place in Excise Department, Indore. The inquiry has been ordered at a time when the eight officers and employees, who were suspended in the scam, have already been reinstated now. The scam was unearthed in August, 2017 but the inquiry has been ordered after 10 months.
Sanjeev Dubey, then excise commissioner, Indore including employees Dharmendra Singh Sisodia, Sukhnandan Pathak, Raviprakash Dubey, Kaushalya Sabnani, DS Parmar, Anmol Gupta and Anandilal Bhatvera were suspended in September.
They were suspended after CM direct intervention in the matter. They were reinstated in January without any inquiry. It was said that they were reinstated due to delay in inquiry.
Dubey, who was posted in loop line was transferred to district excise office, Dewas just two days before the inquiry orders were issued.
Commissioner, departmental inquiry, Satish Mishra has been asked to conduct inquiry into the matter.
The suspended personnel were earlier served a show-cause notice by commercial tax department. In the inquiry orders issued, it is also mentioned that their replies to the notice were not satisfactory.
The department has also admitted that the suspended personnel had committed severe mistakes and showed carelessness in government work but despite of this, they all were reinstated.
The anatomy of the scam
Irregularities had come to the fore when allotment of liquor was done through fake bank challans. The matter was handed over to the police. Police had arrested liquor contractors and middlemen in this connection. Severe irregularities had come during the Police investigations.