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

STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI: The Gauhati High Court has directed that the documents relating to financial transactions of various branches and head office of the Assam State Co-operative Agriculture and Rural Development (ASCARD) Bank, which have been seized and sealed by the Assam Police as per an earlier directive of the court, will be inspected by a four-member team of experts in audit work.

The court has 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 & 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 further directed that the officer concerned should start legal proceedings if the audit reveals criminal offence committed by any person or persons.

While asking that a status report be submitted at the next date of hearing, the court asked the audit team to start compiling an inventory of the available documents related to the financial transactions of the bank. Further, the court directed that the records that have been sealed and taken into custody should be de-sealed by the appropriate police official at the time of inspection of the audit team and be again resealed after the daily work of the audit team is over.

It may be mentioned that the High Court had recently directed Assam's Director General of Police (DGP) to seize all transactional documents of the ASCARD Bank. This directive had come during hearing of several petitions filed by the employees' union of the bank and others. The court had further directed that apart from the bank's head office, the DGP should also bring under his own custody the transactional and other documents of all 28 branches of the bank through the Superintendents of Police of the districts concerned.

It was revealed during the earlier hearing of the matter that the bank has only Rs 21 lakh left in its coffers as of now. The court had observed that many persons took loans from the bank, but they refrained from repaying the money.

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