IT to examine complaints of ''ghost employees'' in CWG OC

Ashwini Shrivastava

New Delhi, Jan 12 (PTI) In fresh trouble for CommonwealthGames Organising Committee, the IT department has soughtdetails of appointment of over 2,000 people amid allegationsthat many were "ghost employees".

In a letter to the OC, Income tax department has asked itto furnish details of muster rolls, documents pertinent toselection of workforce, salary and Tax Deduction at Sourceamong others.

The OC has been asked to submit the details by this month-end. The IT action came following complaints that largeamounts had been siphoned off as salary expenditure in thenames of people falsely shown on the rolls.

About 2,100 people were shown as having worked betweenMay 2009 and November 2010 at different capacities and havetogether drawn salary running into several crores.

"We have asked details of employment in OC tocross-examine whether all the employees have taken theirsalaries and paid taxes. We will also be checking whether themuster rolls and other records were manipulated or not," an ITofficial said.

The move assumes significance as Central VigilanceCommission has received complaints of "fraudulent"recruitment process undertaken by the Organising Committee,sources said.

They said that CVC has also asked the Chief VigilanceOfficer of the Sports Ministry to probe irregularities in thewhole employment process.

The OC has at present about 250 employees who are beingrelieved in a phased manner, sources said.

The anti-corruption watchdog is enquiring into over 30complaints related to alleged corruption in Games workscarried out by different civic and construction agency. Itincludes overlays works, workforce selection, hiring ofequipment and public relation related projects executed by OC.

Besides, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) hasregistered four FIRs naming some of the close aides of OCchairman Suresh Kalmadi for alleged criminal conspiracy andfinancial irregularities in executing certain contracts.

In its recent FIR, V K Verma, a close aide of Kalmadiand Director General (Finance) in OC, was booked under varioussections for forgery, criminal conspiracy and Prevention ofCorruption Act.

Verma''s name also figured in the third FIR filed by CBIin connection with the award of Rs 107 crore Swiss TimeKeeping contract along with that of CWG Secretary GeneralLalit Bhanot.

The total value of the overlays contracts that areunder the scanner is over Rs 600 crore.

Two other FIRs were in connection with allegedirregularities in the Queen''s Baton Relay held in London in2009.

CBI has also questioned Kalmadi in connection with itscases.