Ranchi: BJP on Monday accused the state govt of shielding senior officers allegedly linked to irregularities in treasury transactions and acting only against lower-level employees.Addressing a news conference at the party office, BJP chief spokesperson Pratul Shahdeo said finance minister Radha Krishana Kishore had admitted that records concerning nearly Rs 10,000 crore in govt expenditure over the past few years remained unreconciled.Shahdeo questioned the impartiality of the special investigation team (SIT), alleging that it included officers who had served as superintendents of police in Hazaribag and Bokaro during periods when the suspected irregularities occurred. “An impartial investigation cannot be expected from such officers,” he said.Citing convictions of treasury officers in fodder scam cases, Shahdeo said they could also be held responsible for fraudulent withdrawals of govt funds.He said the Jharkhand Financial Rules and the Jharkhand Treasury Code, 2016, laid down the responsibilities of drawing and disbursing officers (DDOs) and treasury officers in verifying bills, documents and signatures before payments were released. However, he alleged that CID chargesheets filed so far, including in the Chaibasa treasury case, did not name DDOs or treasury officials.Shahdeo also alleged that the state govt had yet to provide 87 categories of documents sought by the principal accountant general for a special audit. The documents were sought on May 11, he said.Congress, part of the coalition govt, dubbed BJP charges as baseless. “The party which has duped crores of students, and public at large by failed promises, is doing what it knows best, spread false charges,” said Congress spokesperson Satish Paul Munjini.
