IMPHAL, April 22(IPF): A big fraud has been detected in the accounts of the Manipur Public School, once a premier educational institution, but now on a nosedive in both administrative reputation and academic performance. Funds of the school amounting to a total of Rs. 95 lakhs, were found diverted into two personal Life Insurance Corporation of India, LICI, accounts of the school’s accounts officer, Santikumar Ray.
One of the LICI policies with the LICI Imphal Branch, (Market Plus T.T. 181/10yrs) is for Rs. 40 lakhs and was bought on March 15, 2007 (Policy No: 491894741). The nominee of the policy is the account officer’s wife Manimala Ray.
The second and more recent LICI policy is bought from the LICI Churachandpur branch and was also bought in the name of the accounts officer, (Market Plus T.T. 191) on March 14, 2009.
This latter amount, after the discovery of the fraud, has since been returned partially to the school account on April 3, 2009.
This case came to light when an LICI agent in Churachandpur and an alumni of the Manipur Public School, discovered the suspicious policy and brought the matter to the notice of the school authorities.
The school authorities promptly initiated action and the accounts officer was forced to terminate the LICI account prematurely, costing the school not just the interest earned for the period of one year since the policy was bought but also nearly Rs. 5000 from the principle of Rs. 55 lakhs as fine for premature encashment.
The recovered money, now depleted to Rs. 54,99,835 from Rs. 55,00,000, it is learnt has since been deposited in the name of the school under a fixed deposit scheme with a bank in Imphal.
As to how the money came to be withdrawn from the school account in the first place, considering such a big withdrawal needed the approval of the top management of the school which includes none other than the chief minister, Okram Ibobi, is still uncertain.
The earlier fraud account was unknown till the time the second policy in Churachandpur LICI was discovered. In the process of settling the second case, this earlier missing fund of Rs. 40 lakh too was discovered and was again traced to another of the account officer’s LICI policies.
The accounts officer produced a certificate seemingly issued by the LICI branch manager Imphal that this policy although bought in the name of Santikumar Ray, belonged to the school, and that Ray is only the signatory on behalf of the trust that runs the school. The certificate also mentions that upon maturity the amount would go the trust.
As to whether the certificate is authentic is now doubtful, for when the school sought clarification from the LICI, the Imphal branch manager of the corporation wrote back on April 7, 2009, saying that Ray does have a policy for Rs. 40 lakhs with the LICI (Policy No: 491894741).
It however said the certificate purportedly issued by the LICI certifying that although the policy is in the name of Ray the money would continue to belong to the school, is probably fake as none of the LICI’s authorised Branch Officials has issued such a certificate.
It also said that the policy in question is definitely not in the name of the trust that runs the school.
Upon further inquiry by the school authorities, LICI Imphal once again categorically clarified that the policy in question is “in the name of Santikumar Ray alone and has no connection with Manipur Public Society (sic). Any benefit under the policy will be payable to Shri Santikumar Ray alone or to his nominee i.e., his wife Smt. Manimala Devi in case of his death before maturity.”
It may be recalled the Manipur Public School, located at Koirengei, is run by a Government of Manipur trust, known as the Manipur Public School Society, MPSS. The chief minister of the state is now its chairman but till a few years ago, it was the state Governor who by tradition occupied this position.
During the Governorship of Ved Marwah, the latter resigned unable to tolerate the messy entanglements the school was constantly thrown into. Since then the mantle had passed on to the chief minister.
Other members of the Governing body of this society constitute top ranking government officials, including the education secretary and finance commissioner. The school is among the first from the state to affiliate to the Central Board of Secondary Education, CBSE. - (IFP)
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One of the LICI policies with the LICI Imphal Branch, (Market Plus T.T. 181/10yrs) is for Rs. 40 lakhs and was bought on March 15, 2007 (Policy No: 491894741). The nominee of the policy is the account officer’s wife Manimala Ray.
The second and more recent LICI policy is bought from the LICI Churachandpur branch and was also bought in the name of the accounts officer, (Market Plus T.T. 191) on March 14, 2009.
This latter amount, after the discovery of the fraud, has since been returned partially to the school account on April 3, 2009.
This case came to light when an LICI agent in Churachandpur and an alumni of the Manipur Public School, discovered the suspicious policy and brought the matter to the notice of the school authorities.
The school authorities promptly initiated action and the accounts officer was forced to terminate the LICI account prematurely, costing the school not just the interest earned for the period of one year since the policy was bought but also nearly Rs. 5000 from the principle of Rs. 55 lakhs as fine for premature encashment.
The recovered money, now depleted to Rs. 54,99,835 from Rs. 55,00,000, it is learnt has since been deposited in the name of the school under a fixed deposit scheme with a bank in Imphal.
As to how the money came to be withdrawn from the school account in the first place, considering such a big withdrawal needed the approval of the top management of the school which includes none other than the chief minister, Okram Ibobi, is still uncertain.
The earlier fraud account was unknown till the time the second policy in Churachandpur LICI was discovered. In the process of settling the second case, this earlier missing fund of Rs. 40 lakh too was discovered and was again traced to another of the account officer’s LICI policies.
The accounts officer produced a certificate seemingly issued by the LICI branch manager Imphal that this policy although bought in the name of Santikumar Ray, belonged to the school, and that Ray is only the signatory on behalf of the trust that runs the school. The certificate also mentions that upon maturity the amount would go the trust.
As to whether the certificate is authentic is now doubtful, for when the school sought clarification from the LICI, the Imphal branch manager of the corporation wrote back on April 7, 2009, saying that Ray does have a policy for Rs. 40 lakhs with the LICI (Policy No: 491894741).
It however said the certificate purportedly issued by the LICI certifying that although the policy is in the name of Ray the money would continue to belong to the school, is probably fake as none of the LICI’s authorised Branch Officials has issued such a certificate.
It also said that the policy in question is definitely not in the name of the trust that runs the school.
Upon further inquiry by the school authorities, LICI Imphal once again categorically clarified that the policy in question is “in the name of Santikumar Ray alone and has no connection with Manipur Public Society (sic). Any benefit under the policy will be payable to Shri Santikumar Ray alone or to his nominee i.e., his wife Smt. Manimala Devi in case of his death before maturity.”
It may be recalled the Manipur Public School, located at Koirengei, is run by a Government of Manipur trust, known as the Manipur Public School Society, MPSS. The chief minister of the state is now its chairman but till a few years ago, it was the state Governor who by tradition occupied this position.
During the Governorship of Ved Marwah, the latter resigned unable to tolerate the messy entanglements the school was constantly thrown into. Since then the mantle had passed on to the chief minister.
Other members of the Governing body of this society constitute top ranking government officials, including the education secretary and finance commissioner. The school is among the first from the state to affiliate to the Central Board of Secondary Education, CBSE. - (IFP)
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