Railway Tribunal Judge Dismissed In Rs 50 Crores Fake Claims Scam

A judge of Railways Claims Tribunal, A K Mittal, has been dismissed from service after being found guilty in a scam relating to fraudulent claims worth Rs.50 crores, reports the Indian Express.

This is the first time a judge of RCT is facing punishment on such a charge.

The probe headed by Supreme Court judge Justice U U Lalit found Mittal, who was lastly posted at the Ernakulam bench, guilty. Based on the enquiry report, President Ram Nath Kovind dismissed him from service on Thursday, the Express reported. Mittal was due to retire in August.

The issue related to fictitious claims awarded by Mittal when he was heading the Patna bench during the period between 2015 and 2017. The Principal bench of RCT at New Delhi sensed something amiss about the claims awarded by Mittal, and an internal probe scrutinized nearly 1000 orders.

The probe indicated double filing — and award — of claims for the same accident and a sudden spike in the rate of disbursal of claims and the like. It was alleged that the scam was carried out in connivance with local lawyers. t was also alleged that Mittal ordered an unusually high rate of interest over and above the claim amount.

A CBI probe has been ordered to unearth the other conspirators involved in the fake claim racket.