Appointment fraud surfaces in secondary edu dept in UP’s Ballia

Close on the heels of unearthing of fraudulent appointments of staff nurses at various health centres in Ballia, another fraud in the ‘recruitment’ of around 179 teachers, clerks and office assistants (peons) in secondary education department of that district has surfaced, confirmed senior police officials on Thursday.

These ‘recruitments’ were made by former district inspector of schools (DIoS) and four other employees of the department between July 2022 and July 2024 and over ₹5 crore was paid to them in salaries, they added.

This came to fore after the current Ballia DIoS lodged an FIR recently after not finding original documents related to these ‘recruitments’, the officials said. Ballia DM Pawan Kumar Laxkar said the DIoS doesn’t have power to do such direct recruitments and issue salary approval orders.

He said office assistants had been deployed through outsourced agency for the past many years while recruitments of teachers in government secondary, non-aided secondary schools as well as of clerical staff were done through different commissions constituted for the purpose.

As per the officials, former DIoS and four other employees of the department had been accused of criminal breach of trust and criminal conspiracy in the FIR lodged with Ballia City Kotwali on February 24.

Circle officer (CO), Ballia city, Shyama Kant confirmed that Ballia DIoS Devendra Kumar Gupta lodged the FIR against the then DIoS Ramesh Singh, his personal assistant Sanjay Kumar Kunwar, senior assistant Ajay Singh, Urdu translator Moinuddin and head clerk Shivam Tiwari.

He said the FIR accused that they were all in connivance and allowed recruitments when Ramesh Singh was the DIoS in spite of the fact that there were no provisions for them.

DIoS Devendra Kumar Gupta said the matter came to light when the original document regarding approval order for issuing salaries of these people were not found in the office.

“After multiple reminders, the staff named in the FIR submitted approval orders of only 15 people and it was found that the signature of the previous DIoS Ramesh Singh in all these documents were made in short form, other than his original signatures,” Gupta added.

“A total of 179 such recruitments included 54 assistant teachers, around 30 temporary teachers, 18 clerks and 77 office assistants in secondary and non-government aided secondary schools. Salaries of over ₹5 crore have been given to them during the same period,” he said.

As per the FIR, the former DIoS in connivance with four other employees approved salaries of the fake employees, who were either wrongfully recruited or recruitment was done without having powers to do so.

The complainant said clear criminal conspiracy of all the accused had been witnessed in the entire process.

He said he even reported the matter to the joint director, secondary education, Azamgarh division and the FIR was lodged after getting directives to initiate stern action.

Former Ballia DIoS Ramesh Singh, who is presently attached to the secondary education directorate in Lucknow, was unavailable for his comment on the matter.