A former postal assistant in Madhya Pradesh has been found guilty of orchestrating a sophisticated fraud, siphoning off more than Rs 13.85 lakh from customer accounts. The conviction was delivered by a special Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) court in Bhopal, marking a significant conclusion to a case of corruption and digital forgery within the postal department.
The Details of the Fraudulent Scheme
The Special Judge for CBI cases, Neelam Shukla, pronounced the conviction on December 27. The accused, identified as Rajnish Tiwari, was the sole individual charge-sheeted in this case. The investigation, conducted by the CBI's Anti-Corruption Branch in Bhopal, revealed that Tiwari was posted as a postal assistant at the Lashkar Head Post Office in Gwalior in 2020 when he committed the offences.
According to the agency's findings, Tiwari misappropriated approximately Rs 13,85,496. He achieved this by manipulating the electronic records of 17 different Recurring Deposit (RD) accounts belonging to customers. The CBI stated that the accused tampered with account details within the postal department's Finacle Internet Module to illegally divert the funds.
Modus Operandi and Investigation
The diverted money was funneled into three savings accounts. These accounts were allegedly opened without following the proper procedure. Two of these accounts were held by Tiwari himself, either in his sole name or jointly. To access the stolen money, the accused used ATM cards that were reported stolen from the Lashkar Head Post Office.
The case came to light after a written complaint was filed by S.K. Thakre, the Senior Superintendent of Post Offices in Gwalior, on April 20, 2022. The complaint alleged large-scale financial irregularities and a serious abuse of official position by the accused postal assistant, which prompted the CBI to register a case and begin its probe.
Court's Verdict and Sentencing
Following a full trial, the court found Rajnish Tiwari guilty under multiple sections of Indian law. The charges included provisions from the Indian Penal Code (IPC), the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 (as amended in 2018), and the Information Technology Act, 2000.
The court handed down a sentence of five years of rigorous imprisonment for each offence under IPC Sections 381 (theft by clerk), 420 (cheating), 468 (forgery for purpose of cheating), and 471 (using forged documents as genuine), as well as under Section 13(1)(a) read with Section 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act. Additionally, he was sentenced to three years of rigorous imprisonment each under Sections 66(C) and 66(D) of the IT Act.
A fine of Rs 2,000 was imposed for each offence. The court also stipulated that failure to pay the fine would result in an additional four months of imprisonment. All the sentences are to run concurrently. This verdict underscores the judiciary's strict stance against corruption and digital financial fraud within public institutions.
