Bengal funds to buy tabs for students lands in Bihar
Times of India | 13 November 2024
123 Kolkata: Seven individuals were arrested on Tuesday for allegedly misappropriating money released to buy tablets by the state govt. It also came to light that the money meant for 15 students from a school in Salar, Murshidabad, was misappropriated, which was traced to Bihar. In addition, complaints of misappropriation has come from Kolkata now, with cops registering two FIRs at Jadavpur and Thakurpukur.
According to police sources, money intended for 15 students of classes XI and XII from Tia Shanti Sudha Das Vidyamandir in Salar was siphoned through cyber fraud. Preliminary investigations revealed that Rs 1.5 lakh sent to these students was deposited in an account in Kishanganj, Bihar. Of this, Rs 1.4 lakh was withdrawn. The police's cybercrime unit lodged an FIR and began searching for the accused.
On Tuesday, cops arrested Hasem Ali, a resident of Baishnavnagar and owner of a local cyber cafe, in Malda, Asharul Hossain from Islampur in North Dinajpur, and Saddiq Hossain and Mobarak Hossain from Chopra's Daspara. Three others were also nabbed.
"We have evidence to suggest they hacked into students' accounts to embezzle funds meant for purchasing tablets provided by the state govt. The role of each accused is being ascertained," said an officer. Fresh FIRs have been registered in the Salar incident and on a specific accusation of a similar nature in the Sunderban Police District.
The police suspect that more individuals might be involved in this racket and a search has begun for them. All the arrested individuals are aged between 21 and 25.
Burdwan DSP Sayak Das said Hasem accessed the Bengal education portal via mobile in July and altered the information in a bank account.
According to sources from Tia Shanti Sudha Das Vidyamandir, while other students received their allocated funds for tablets, 15 students complained of not receiving theirs. In response, the headmaster contacted the bank authorities. Upon investigation, the bank found that the money was embezzled by altering the IFSC code of the students' accounts. The school authorities filed a complaint with the police, who forwarded it to the cybercrime unit. Their investigation revealed that the money was deposited into an account in a state-owned bank in Bihar. Although the bank account number was the same, the IFSC code was changed to carry out the fraud. It was also found that money from 14 out of the 15 accounts was withdrawn by the fraudsters. The police are currently searching for the accused. Several guardians have also filed separate complaints regarding this issue.
State education minister Bratya Basu said, "The National Informative Center (NIC) is investigating the matter. Each person involved is being identified. Measures are being taken by the police and at administrative levels accordingly. Several individuals have been arrested. Those who are involved will not be spared."
There has been uproar in the state for a few days over money meant for students to buy tablets being transferred to other bank accounts.