Orissa Cm Calls For Cbi Probe Into Bourse Scam

Orissa chief minister Naveen Patnaik has ordered probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) into the financial bungling in the Bhubaneswar Stock Exchange to the tune of Rs 1.3 crore.

While doing so, Patnaik has observed that since no formal complain has been lodged with the police on the matter, the report of the state finance secretary regarding the irregularities will be considered as the first information report (FIR).

The state finance secretary, Ajit Tripathy, who is also the nominee of Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) in the bourse council, had earlier written a letter to Sebi making his own assessment of the situation and recommending supersession of the council.

In a separate letter, Tripathy had urged the state home secretary T K Mishra to hand over the investigations relating to the scam to the CBI.

Meanwhile, Sebi has initiated steps for investigation into the matter. A two-member team from Sebi's regional office in Calcutta led by assistant general manager, Jayanta Jash had visited the stock exchange last week and scrutinised documents.

They are supposed to submit their report to the headoffice in Mumbai in two weeks. Welcoming the order for CBI probe, the president of the stock exchange, T D Bhayana said, let the agency investigate into every aspect of the irregularities.

"It will bring out the truth," he added. He, however, said, he didn't have any intention to step down in the wake of allegations of his involvement in the scam. "Sebi is my regulator. I will not quit unless they ask me to do so", he observed.

There were reports in the media quoting bank documents which showed at least Rs 40 lakh of over Rs 1 crore funds misappropriated from the members' welfare trust of the Bhubaneswar stock exchange had gone to the kitty of India Finance Guarantee Ltd (IFGL) owned by bourse president Bhayana and vice president Ashok Kumar Sardhana.

The money had been transferred from the Canara Bank exchange extension counter current account No 1003 of Pradeep Investment owned by Babulal Sharma, a former vice-president of the bourse who is accused of defrauding the trust fund to the tune of Rs 1.30 crore.

Meanwhile, a section of brokers feared that continuance of Bhayana in the post of president may be detrimental to the probe as he may use his official position to tamper with the documents.

"To make the probe appear free fair and independent, Bhayana should immediately be removed from the post of president", said Rajkumar Khemka, a broker.

He also hoped that the scope of the CBI probe will be expanded to include the murder of a fellow broker in 1996, the investigation into which has been put in the cold storage by the state police.

Meanwhile, a separate inquiry launched by the directorate of Income Tax has found that the members' welfare trust of the bourse is not registered with it as required under section 11 and 12 of the IT Act.

The IT officials have conducted a physical survey of the business premises of the exchange and taken copies of the books of account of the bourse and the members' welfare trust for investigation purposes.