2 days ago
SIS, GIPE trades charges again as they fight over funds, bank account
The strained relations between the Servants of India Society (SIS) and its institute Gokhale Institute of Politics and Economics (GIPE) is once again out in the open with both the bodies trading charges of wrongdoing against each other. While addressing the media in Pune on Thursday, Vishal Gaikwad, officiating deputy registrar of GIPE accused the SIS of freezing the bank accounts of the institute. On his part Damodar Sahoo, chairman of SIS, claimed that GPIE had unilaterally converted the jointly held bank account of the institute to a single-operated one which had prompted SIS to write the bank.
Gaikwad said, as per University Grants Commission (UGC) norms, the sponsoring society does not have rights over the bank accounts of the institute. 'We learnt from the banks that our accounts were frozen. We managed to get them unfrozen but this is a gross violation of rules,' he claimed. Gaikwad said they have written to the Deccan Police to include the name of Sahoo in the ongoing case of allegedly fraudulently transferring Rs 1.42 crores from GIPE for the use of SIS. 'We have also written to the charity commissioner asking for the present board of SIS to be dismissed and appointment of a neural observer in its place,' he said.
Relations between SIS and GIPE have soured since the last year with both the bodies trading charges against each other. GIPEs chancellor Sanjeev Sanyal had made serious allegations against Sahoo and others of misappropriating funds. Sanyal was swiftly removed from his position by Sahoo but was reinstated. Milind Deshmukh, the secretary of the SIS was arrested by the Deccan Police for his role in the multi-crore corruption scandal that had rocked the institute. Deshmukh was later removed from his position and is out on bail now.
Sahoo on his part claimed that GIPE had unilaterally deviated from the convention of jointly operated accounts which had prompted the SIS to write to the bank. 'The GPIE had not intimated of the conversion of the account to single operated,' he said. Asked about the formation of an advisory committee which Gaikwad had termed as illegal, Sahoo said the committee was for better coordination between both the bodies.
