Author: Express News Services
Publication: The Indian Express
Date: August 19, 2006
Introduction: To keep Patil out of investigation,
State Cooperatives Minister says he issued only recommendation, not an order
Accused in a multi-crore bank fraud seam,
former Nashik MP and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Madhavrao Balwant
Patil has been kept out of the probe on the "recommendation" of
State Cooperative Minister Jaiprakash Dandegaonkar.
It was on the minister's instructions that
Patil's name was dropped from the ongoing probe into allegations of fraud
in the Nashik Credit and Capital Cooperative Bank seam after the latter claimed
he was "too old and not directly involved".
Patil, the State Cooperative Bank chairman,
along with 39 accused has been named in the FIR filed by a government auditor
on August 6 at the Panchavati police station.
The FIR alleges fraud and misappropriation
of funds by the bank, accusing directors, officials and "influential
customers" of cheating.
Ironically, Dandegaokar's instructions to
his department officials to drop charges against Patil has been meticulously
recorded in the complaint lodged at the police station concerned.
In his FIR, government auditor Ramdas Kisan
Aambekar has quoted from Nashik division's deputy registrar's letter, dated
August 3, 2006.
Referring to instructions received from Dandegaonkar,
the letter states: "In a memorandum to the State Cooperative Minister,
Madhavrao Balwantrao Patil has claimed that he has fulfilled all bank requirements
and has no dues. As per instructions received by the Nashik division no police
action (criminal proceedings) is to be initiated against Madhavrao Balwantrao
Patil."
Admitting that he had forwarded Patil's "request
to be left out of the police probe", Dandegaonkar said: "A police
case is filed primarily for recovery of money. Mr Patil has already paid up
Rs 16 lakh. Stating that he would take responsibility for any further liability,
he asked not to be involved in the police case. I only forwarded this request
and recommended the same. It was not an order."
The six-page audit report, filed by auditor
B S Pagare, looks into the accounts of the bank between 1992 and 2005. It
states that the bank issued loans against shares of companies not registered
with the Bombay Stock Exchange, permitted overdrafts from current accounts,
gave loans against trading bills and book dates.
During the audit, it was discovered that loans
worth Rs four lakh had been sanctioned without proper paperwork. Further,
credit was given to companies with no balance in one of its accounts and as
a result loans worth crores had not been recovered.
All accused were issued notices by the cooperative
department in February, five months before the FIR was lodged.
