Bengal man gets bail in Samagra Shiksha fraud case

Panaji: A Mapusa court granted bail to Rabin Paul, a 40-year-old native of West Bengal, who was arrested in the Samagra Shiksha fraud case by Porvorim police on May 15.The investigating officer told the court that the crime was very serious, involving the siphoning of public money from the bank account of a govt department and fraudulently transferring it to other bank accounts, causing a loss to state govt.

The officer added that Paul was part of a big racket and, if released on bail, might abscond or alert the other remaining accused persons, and tamper with evidence.The court stated that it appeared the investigation was complete and that he was no longer required in custody. The investigating officer, the court said, had not provided any grounds for rejecting his bail application.TOI had reported that the police said the case involved a big racket of many accused persons, which was being investigated in detail.

The funds alleged to have been siphoned from the bank account of Goa Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan were intended for the implementation of school education schemes.GSSA holds a savings account in the Porvorim branch of a nationalised bank in the name of Goa Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan Society, and the misappropriation came to light in April when an auditor of a private bank pointed to the transactions. Immediately, the bank manager of the private bank approached the GSSA office and highlighted the transactions. All bank accounts involved have been frozen, and the trail of money was also traced by the police.