BSEB Chairman to be prosecuted

Vigilance likely to prosecute BSEB chairman

Patna, (BiharTimes): The chairman of the Bihar State Electricity Board is likely to be prosecuted by the Vigilance Wing of the BSEB in a metre-tampering case.

The case is related to the waiving of penalty imposed on a local steel firm. Mukherjee and four senior engineers have been charged with granting undue favour under the Voluntary Declaration Scheme (VDS) to Dadiji Steel Private Limited, Sabalpur at the eastern outskirts of Patna. The favour allegedly led to the loss of Rs 19 crore to the state exchequer. The chairman waived Rs 19 crore out of Rs 20 crore penalty on the firm.

A case was subsequently lodged against the Chairman and officials and the beneficiary company with the Vigilance police station in April last. After completing the probe into the case in May the investigation officer wrote to the state government seeking sanction against the power board chairman and the engineers.

However, even after four months the state government did not give consent to the prosecute the BSEB officials. He has links with high-ups in the state government. Vigilance sources said that in the absence of the go-ahead from the state government within the prescribed three months, sanction in a case under the Prevention of Corruption Act 1988 would be deemed to have been granted automatically as per Supreme Court rulings in fodder scam and another cases.

The question that begs an answer is why hasn't the Nitish Kumar government not given sanction to prosecute the Chairman of BSEB?
I thought he was honest.
The provision for giving permission to sanction should be discontinued. This one provision which is the main cause why culprits are not brought to book.
The three months provision should be reduced to one month.
Why should any agency of the government require three months?
If the governement does not give sanction it should give reasons why they have not given sanction.
The BSEB, the PWD, Irrigation departments have been dens of corruption right from inception in Bihar.
When I was in Patna around 1976 I heard of a case in BSEB.
One business house which has now become very large and reputed, among the top ten in India started their business in Bihar making buckets.
Then they started supplying ACSR and AAC conductors to BSEB.
During the day-time, they would supply the drums of ACSR and AAC to the BSEB godowns and at night they would remove the drums.
The next day they would supply the same drums to BSEB.
The conductors were supplied were also short of length.
This went on for quite some time.
Of course, he had the whole hierarchy in BSEB lined up and used to make payments to them in cash.
That business house then bought a copper conductor factory in Maharashtra.
Rest is all history.
It is not without reason that the people in South Bihar objected and broke away from Bihar as Jharkhand.
Of course, it is another matter that the politicians of Jharkhand have turned out to be just as corrupt, if not worse.
The poor adhivasis are still simple.
It is their leaders who are taking them for long rides.