GPF scam unearthed, three arrested

Police today claimed to have busted a GPF (General Provident Fund) scam worth Rs1.5 crore in Primary Health Centre of Muzaffarpur police station with the arrest of three persons.

The three arrested include a senior medical officer, a pharmacist cum accountant who was kingpin of the scam and a health worker, while two former SMOs of the centre are on the run after a Sessions court rejected their bails.

During investigation it came to light that GPF of about 62 employees was withdrawn on the basis of forged documents, senior superintendent of police (SSP) Nawahshahr, Rakesh Aggarwal said.

SSP revealed that apart from recovering cash of Rs6 lakh from the house and bank locker of kingpin pharmacist cum accountant Karampal Goel, a resident of Ludhiana, police have also recovered registered sale deeds of 15 plots owned by  Goel or his family in Ludhiana and NSC/Kisan Vikas Patra of worth Rs3.60 lakh from him.

Aggarwal said that 62 GPF withdrawals were managed by Goel and accomplices. It was his attempt to withdraw Rs2.65 lakh and Rs2.445 lakh respectively in the names of sanitary inspector Darshan Singh and staff nurse Bhupinder Kaur which led to his nailing.

Police have also named former SMOs Dr Jugraj Singh (now retired), Dr Hardev Singh and Dr Krishan Lal, who remained posted in the PHC from 2002 along with health worker Salinder Singh, the SSP said.