Bhubaneswar: The Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of Odisha Police on Tuesday arrested suspended OAS officer Madhusmita Singh in connection with large scale corruption during her tenure as Belpahar Municipality Executive Offier.
Singh, former executive officer of Belpahar Municipality, was subsequently the Tehsildar of Jamda in Mayurbhanj district when she was placed under suspension recently by the state government.
The case, involving alleged misappropriation of crores of rupees, had earlier led to the arrest of the Municipality’s then-accountant, Bibhuti Sahu, by Belpahar police. After preliminary investigation, the case was handed over to the EOW on August 27, and Singh was suspended by the state Revenue Department on August 30.
During her tenure as Executive Officer, irregularities amounting to more than Rs four crore were detected.
However, the EOW has now found that even under the current executive officer, Gourav Chandra Pradhan, payments exceeding Rs two crore were made without proper scrutiny of the municipality’s cashbook.
Sources indicate that the EOW has already summoned Pradhan for questioning, though the date of his appearance has not been confirmed. Investigators are expected to examine the status of the cashbook at the time Pradhan assumed charge and the basis on which he approved the payments.
Besides exposing lapses in the municipality, the scam also brought to light alleged negligence on the part of the Treasury Department, the Treasury Directorate, the District Urban Development Agency (DUDA), and the district administration.
