In Naxal-hit Jharkhand, the first stop for 20 Union Secretaries working on a counter-Naxal strategy and where President’s Rule was extended for six months last week, the withdrawal of over Rs 14 crore Secret Service funds by Director General of Police V D Ram and other officials has been questioned by the office of the Accountant General which has called for an investigation saying rules were not followed and “the possibility of fraud, embezzlement and misappropriation of government funds cannot be ruled out”.

In one instance, DGP Ram withdrew Rs 5.60 crore in cash from the Secretariat branch of the State Bank of India on March 16, 2006 — a fortnight before he gave the withdrawal and disbursal power to the Additional DGP.

With the AG raising objections, Chief Secretary A K Basu has written to Ram: “DAG has raised certain objections regarding non-observance of provisions of Special Branch Manual and Bihar Financial Rules regarding Secret Service Expenditure. The objections are very serious in nature and it needs to be examined thoroughly. Please send a detailed up-to-date report regarding the steps taken by you in this matter so that further course of action can be decided upon.”

Money from the SS fund, according to Rule 4 of the Special Branch Manual (SBM), was to go to “informers who have given or are likely to give useful information of a secret nature, and whose identity must not be disclosed.” Jharkhand is one of the states worst hit by Naxal violence with large swathes under the control of ultra-Left extremists who regularly target police, politicians and the railways.

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