CVC scanner on senior retired bank officials accused of corruption

New Delhi: Senior retired officials of government-controlled banks who were accused of corruption and faced no action have now come under the scanner of probity watchdog Central Vigilance Commission (CVC).

The Commission has asked all public sector banks to report to it such matters of alleged impropriety by high-ranking officials, who are now not in service so that that action could be taken against them.

The move comes after the CVC noticed that some public sector banks did not consult it on cases of malpractice, thus allegedly helping a few top officers evade action.

The corruption watchdog needs to be consulted in two stages in vigilance cases — first stage advice (when alleged misconduct is initially detected) and second stage advice (when a penalty has to be imposed on errant government employees).

In a recent directive by the CVC to all state-owned banks, the Commission said while examining references received from various public sector banks for advice; it had observed instances of non-consultation in matters of retired officers of Senior Management Grade Scale (SMGS-V) and above — that is, Regional Managers, and Assistant General Managers, among others.