PF scam: ‘Multiple lapses led to investment in shady firm going undetected’

The illegal investment of Uttar Pradesh power employees’ provident fund contribution in a Mumbai-based unsecured private housing finance company DHFCL, now a declared defaulter, appears to be a clear case of multi-level lapses resulting in continuance of the scam for two-and-a-half years, people associated with the state’s power sector alleged. HT Image Right from the employees and pensioners’ representatives, who were on the Power Sector Employees’ Trust that invested the fund, to the internal auditors, who prepared and audited the Trust’s balance sheets, all failed to detect and point out the investment being done in utter violation of the Central government’s guidelines, they added. The Trust invested around Rs 2,600 crore from the employees’ PF in the Dewan Housing Finance Corporation Ltd between March 17, 2017 and till a few months ago. “Although the internal auditors verified the UP Power Sector Employees Trust’s balance sheets up to the year 2016-17, in March this year, they never detected or pointed out the irregularities,” Alok Kumar said, adding, “We are taking up this issue with the auditors.” Not only did the auditors fail to sense the scam, even the power employees and their representatives never detected the irregularities.