Kolkata: A trustee of a renowned private English medium school in Gariahat area was arrested on Thursday by the cops of Gariahat Police Station for alleged misappropriation of funds worth about Rs 10 crore.
Krishna Damani, trustee of South Point Education Society (SPES) and also the administrator and treasurer of South Point School, was picked up by the police from outside of the Birla Building on R N Mukherjee Road in the afternoon. Police have started search and seizure operations across the city in connection with the case.
According to sources, a case was registered against Damani at the Gariahat Police Station alleging that he along with his accomplices siphoned off at least Rs 10 crore from the school fund. The malpractice was spotted during an audit last year.
After the issue was noticed, an internal probe was launched. The investigation was conducted for over a year and it was found that the money was transferred through multiple bank transactions.
It is alleged that in the past seven years, a company owned and controlled by Damani had shown Rs 14.31 crore as income without having any real business activity. Most of these funds came from the school. In the past three years, Rs 9.37 crore have been transferred from the school to the accounts of this private enterprise.
Of the amount received by this company, Rs 4.40 crore was transferred to Damani’s relatives and associates. Also while setting up a second campus in Mukundapur, the work was hampered and delayed by several years and is facing massive cost overrun.
However, school authorities have assured that the operations of the school are not going to be hampered or disrupted due to the issue.
On Thursday in a statement M P Birla Group stated: “The MP Birla Group assures all stakeholders, including students and staff members, that the operations of the school are not going to be disrupted by the ongoing
investigation, we commit to extend full cooperation to the state administration to make sure that all accomplices of the prime accused, within and outside the school and SPES, face the full force of the law. Alongside, the MP Birla Group will make all possible attempts to recover properties stolen from the school and trust, which are run as non-profits.”