MEERUT: The Allahabad high court on Tuesday ordered Meerut municipal corporation authorities to explain whether any audit was conducted in the civic body in the last five years, and if it was, then produce audit reports of all development works undertaken by the civic agency in the last five years. The HC threatened that the agency will have an investigation by CAG if it failed to comply with its
order.
The court was hearing a PIL filed by RTI activist Lokesh Khurana. The corporation's chief auditor said that he was not provided any file for audit against which he had also moved the high court. The auditor said that even after directions of the HC, he was given only a few files that, too, exhibited gross misappropriation of funds.
Shams-Uz-Zaman, Khurana's lawyer in HC, said, "The HC has given two weeks to the corporation authorities to reply in the matter and provide audit reports along with affidavits. The next hearing will be held on September 29."
"In June, we had filed an RTI application seeking information on the audit of development works undertaken by the civic agency in the last five years beginning from 2010, but the corporation demanded Rs 41,872 as expenses for providing the information, following which we approached the HC and filed a PIL."
A Nagar Nigam official, who did not wish to be quoted, told TOI that in the last five years, funds worth several hundred crore of rupees had been allocated to the civic body by the state urban development ministry, the Central government under its various development schemes and also for the infrastructure projects under the 13th finance commission.
Chief municipal auditor Sachchidanand Tripathi told TOI, "When I was deputed as auditor for Nagar Nigam in 2010, I found that only pre-audit was done by the account section, which is not a part of audit and just part of book-keeping. To my sheer surprise, I was not provided with any document about the projects even till one year after I had joined despite the fact I had sent numerous reminders to the municipal commissioner regarding the same. When I informed the state government of this, I was transferred in December 2011. I approached the high court and got a stay order on my transfer. HC also directed the commissioner to provide me with the files to audit them."
Tripathi added, "After the HC order, the then municipal commissioner, Chandra Prakash Tripathi, provided me a few files in February 2012. I found a lot of irregularities and misappropriation of funds and forward them to municipal commissioner with my objections. After that no file was forwarded to me. In March 2012, the new municipal commissioner, Rajkumar Sachan, too followed into his predecessor's footsteps. Since then till May 2015, I was not provided even a single file for audit. In May 2015, I went to the HC and prayed for giving me work as the MMC officials were continuously misleading councillors that I was sitting idle at my office while drawing salary without any work."
Municipal commissioner SK Dubey could not be contacted for him comment despite many efforts.
order.
The court was hearing a PIL filed by RTI activist Lokesh Khurana. The corporation's chief auditor said that he was not provided any file for audit against which he had also moved the high court. The auditor said that even after directions of the HC, he was given only a few files that, too, exhibited gross misappropriation of funds.
Shams-Uz-Zaman, Khurana's lawyer in HC, said, "The HC has given two weeks to the corporation authorities to reply in the matter and provide audit reports along with affidavits. The next hearing will be held on September 29."
"In June, we had filed an RTI application seeking information on the audit of development works undertaken by the civic agency in the last five years beginning from 2010, but the corporation demanded Rs 41,872 as expenses for providing the information, following which we approached the HC and filed a PIL."
A Nagar Nigam official, who did not wish to be quoted, told TOI that in the last five years, funds worth several hundred crore of rupees had been allocated to the civic body by the state urban development ministry, the Central government under its various development schemes and also for the infrastructure projects under the 13th finance commission.
Chief municipal auditor Sachchidanand Tripathi told TOI, "When I was deputed as auditor for Nagar Nigam in 2010, I found that only pre-audit was done by the account section, which is not a part of audit and just part of book-keeping. To my sheer surprise, I was not provided with any document about the projects even till one year after I had joined despite the fact I had sent numerous reminders to the municipal commissioner regarding the same. When I informed the state government of this, I was transferred in December 2011. I approached the high court and got a stay order on my transfer. HC also directed the commissioner to provide me with the files to audit them."
Tripathi added, "After the HC order, the then municipal commissioner, Chandra Prakash Tripathi, provided me a few files in February 2012. I found a lot of irregularities and misappropriation of funds and forward them to municipal commissioner with my objections. After that no file was forwarded to me. In March 2012, the new municipal commissioner, Rajkumar Sachan, too followed into his predecessor's footsteps. Since then till May 2015, I was not provided even a single file for audit. In May 2015, I went to the HC and prayed for giving me work as the MMC officials were continuously misleading councillors that I was sitting idle at my office while drawing salary without any work."
Municipal commissioner SK Dubey could not be contacted for him comment despite many efforts.
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