Police register cheating case against IAS officer and wife

Panaji, Sep 1 (UNI) The Panjim police today registered a criminal case against IAS officer R P Pal and his wife.

This followed a complaint against him by social activist Advocate Aires Rodrigues that the officer allegedly arranged a pay of Rs 147 daily wage to his wife on a fictitious name from the city corporation for many years.

Speaking to UNI, Police Inspector Francisco Corte said the sleuths would approach the city corporation for obtaining documentary evidence in the case to establish whether the corporation used to pay the daily wage to Mr Pal's wife on a regular basis on a fictitious name.

The Goa government is likely to order a vigilance probe if the police and the city corporation of Panaji find a prima facie case against IAS officer, according to chief secretary J.P.Singh.

Mr Rodrigues, who is spokesman of NGO Utt Goenkara, had also urged the Chief Secretary to probe into accounts at UTI bank, Syndicate Bank and Andhra Bank, allegedly being operated by Pal in the name of a NGO.

Mr Rodrigues had, in his complaint, alleged that contactors and others approaching Pal, preferring not to pay in cash, were directed to deposit the kick-backs into these bank accounts.

While demanding a probe into Pal's role in several scams, including the Sonsoddo garbage disposal plant fiasco, Adv. Rodrigues had urged the Chief Secretary that all the illegally acquired properties in the state owned by Pal and on fake names be seized by the Government.

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