Varanasi: District social welfare officer Rajesh Chaudhary was arrested from Kunwar Singh Udyan area in Azamgarh by the Kotwali police on Wednesday for allegedly paying Rs 51.46 lakh as salary to 10 illegally appointed teachers.
Arrest and Charges
Azamgarh ASP (city) Madhuwan Kumar Singh said Chaudhary (55), a native of Ambedkarnagar and posted in Azamgarh, was booked along with head assistant of his office Satyendra Bahadur Singh under sections 61(2) (criminal conspiracy) and 316(5) (criminal breach of trust) of BNS. The case was registered on a complaint by RK Chaurasia, deputy director (social welfare, Azamgarh division), on May 9.
Complaint and Investigation
On February 20, one Arun Kumar Singh submitted a complaint to Azamgarh district magistrate Ravindra Kumar alleging that Chaudhary and Singh had misused government funds to pay salary to assistant teachers whose appointments were in violation of government orders and despite a ban on such payment by the state government. The DM formed a committee under the chief development officer to probe the matter.
The committee, which also comprised the district development officer and chief treasury officer, found that the appointments of 10 assistant teachers were illegal and that despite the government ban, Rs 51,46,780 was paid to them as salary.
Committee Report and Action
The committee's report stated that cases related to these matters were pending before the high court. After receiving the report, the DM forwarded it to the state government with a recommendation for stern action. Following government approval, the police lodged an FIR against Chaudhary and Singh.
