Patna, Nov 14: Observing that the credibility of Bihar government on the issue of state PSUs was at stake, Patna High Court has ordered for a CBI probe into the role and conduct of more than 100 senior IAS, IPS officers and former chairpersons of these undertakings who were responsible for their present pathetic condition. The court also urged the Comptroller and Auditor General of India to audit the accounts and books of such PSUs and corporations since the time the defaults were made.
The court observed that it was a matter of financial scandal, involving people in power misusing politics.
''A special team be sent to audit the books and accounts of such companies. Only then could they be laid before the houses of legislature as the law required'', the court noted.
A division bench of Patna High Court comprising Chief Justice R S Dhawan and Justice Shashank Kumar Singh said the case which related to matter of denial of post retirement benefits, salary and other claims of their employees should have been dealt with by the Bihar Administrative Services Tribunal. However, the tribunal lay with vacant chairs and vacant rooms.
In its order, the court directed the CBI to inquire and investigate as to who were those who sat in these companies as administrators and managers and were responsible for not submitting statutory information as required under the companies act of 1956 and were thus answerable to the law for corporate crimes and of deaths which had occurred in poverty because of service dues not received.
Nearly six months had passed since the Supreme Court directed the state government to deposit Rs 50 crore with Patna High Court for payment of salary arrears and post retirement benefits, asking the latter to facilitate the process.
The targeted beneficiaries, however, are yet to get any sort of financial assistance.
The state government while complying with the directive of the Supreme Court, deposited Rs 50 crore with the high court in two equal installments of Rs 25 crore.
The court observed that there was a flood of cases of people living in poverty despite technically having a job, the employed who are jobless, the employed who are salary less and the retired who are pension less.
Bureau Report