District teams may assist ASCARD Bank audit: Gauhati High Court

STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI: The Gauhati High Court has directed that district-level committees may be constituted to go into the district-level records of various branches of the Assam State Cooperative Agriculture and Rural Development (ASCARD) Bank and thereafter submit their respective reports to the main audit committee that has been constituted as per the directive of the court.

The court clarified that the main audit committee would supervise the audit reports and consider further steps that may be required in that regard.

It may be mentioned that in view of a suggestion made by a meeting held under the aegis of the Commissioner and Secretary of the Finance Department on July 22 last, the High Court has recently modified its earlier order regarding audit of the seized documents pertaining to the ASCARD Bank. The court clarified that instead of the Principal Accountant General (A&E), personnel for the audit will be deputed by the Accountant General (Audit), Assam. The other imperatives of the court's earlier order dated June 30 last would remain the same.

It is also pertinent to mention that vide its earlier order, the High Court had directed that the documents relating to financial transactions of various branches and head office of the ASCARD Bank, which were seized and sealed by the Assam Police as per a previous directive of the court, will be inspected by a four-member team of experts in audit work. The court had requested the office of the Principal Accountant General (A&E), Assam and the office of the Director of Audit, Local Fund, Assam to provide two experts each for the audit work. The court was also amenable to the submission that the Commissioner and Secretary of the Finance Department, Manish Thakur, would facilitate and supervise the audit work while the DIG of the Bureau of Investigation (Economic Offences), Rafiul Alam Laskar, would guide the audit team on the technicalities of financial transactions. The court had further directed that the officer concerned should start legal proceedings if the audit reveals criminal offence committed by any person or persons.

Also Read: Gauhati High Court orders experts' team to audit ASCARD Bank papers

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