Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): The Economic Offences Wing (EOW) has taken a forced break from conducting raids in the state due to shortage of personnel. The agency conducted its last raid in September 2022, and since then it has been sitting with folded hands.
The agency conducts investigations in such cases related to corruption, but due to shortage of staff, the agency is unable to complete the investigation in the pending cases. Because of the understaffing, the agency is also not taking up new cases.
In October 2022, as many as 25 inspector rank officers working as investigating officers (IOs) were transferred from the EOW and since then the posts have been lying vacant. Again during the state assembly elections 2023, more officers were shifted and as of now the EOW is working with 50% of its strength.
People with knowledge of the matter informed that around 80 IOs were in the agency against 130 required officers, but after the transfer of the IOs the agency is now working with half of its staff.
Investigation in several cases has almost come to a halt and the agency is not undertaking any new cases, there have been no raids, and searches because of shortage of personnel.
Sources claimed that around 5 to 7 inputs are with the EOW to take action against the corrupt officials, but they are not having required staff to act.
In September 2022, the EOW sleuths had conducted raids and arrested bishop PC Singh and recovered around Rs 1.60 crore in Indian and foreign currencies from his bungalow in Jabalpur. On September 8, a cheating case was registered against him on a complaint.
The complaint had alleged that Singh indulged in financial misconduct in running an educational society wherein Rs 2.70 crore collected as students' fees by the society's various institutions between the year 2004-05 and 2011-12 was misused. After his arrest, the CNI sacked him from the Bishop's post.
Since then the other investigation agencies, like enforcement directorate (ED), income tax(IT), intelligence bureau (IB) also sneaked into the case and the EOW Madhya Pradesh won applause for its work in New Delhi.
