Alleged Fraud by Anil Ambani Insurance Company, Satya Pal Malik Called by CBI as Witness
NEW DELHI, Apr 21: Former Jammu and Kashmir Governor Satya Pal Malik has been summoned by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for questioning as a witness in a case of alleged irregularities by Reliance General Insurance.
Malik said the CBI has asked for his presence at the agency’s Akbar Road guest house in central Delhi on April 28 for “certain clarifications.” “They want certain clarifications for which they want my presence. I am going to Rajasthan so I have given them dates from April 27 to 29 when I am available,” Malik said.
“The CBI has not summoned me. They need some clarifications for which they contacted me to find out when I would be available. The meeting has been scheduled for April 28,” said Malik. Clarifications would be on a group insurance scheme for the Jammu and Kashmir government employees that he had cancelled when he was the governor there. Malik had cancelled a contract by the company owned by industrialist Anil Ambani, in 2018 when he was the Governor of Jammu and Kashmir.
In a first information report (FIR), the CBI named Reliance General Insurance along with Trinity Reinsurance Brokers as accused in the alleged scam in rolling out a medical insurance scheme for Jammu and Kashmir government employees and their families. Malik had alleged fraud in the insurance scheme after which the CBI action came.
The scheme, covering some 3.5 lakh employees, was rolled out in September, 2018, but was cancelled within a month by Malik. At that time, Malik had said state government employees wanted the contract to be cancelled as they found it to be “fraudulent” and he too drew the same conclusion after going through the details.
“I myself went through files, and when I came to the conclusion that the contract was awarded wrongly, I cancelled it,” Malik had said. The CBI spoke with Malik in September last year for more information about the allegations he made against the insurance firms in another case of alleged corruption in giving the contract for civil work at Kiru hydroelectric power project.
Incidentally, only last week Malik’s comments about the 2019 Pulwama attack dragging the prime minister Narendra Modi’s government had triggered a political storm. During an interview with a news website, Malik had claimed that security lapses led to the Pulwama attack in which 40 Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel were killed. He said a request by the paramilitary force asking for an aircraft to commute was denied by the government, which in turn led to the soldiers travelling by road that resulted in the death of the CRPF personnel.
In April 2022, the CBI had registered two cases on a reference from the State administration, following corruption charges made by Malik, to investigation the alleged malpractices in the award of contracts related to the insurance scheme; and civil works worth about ₹2,200 crore.
Irregularities were alleged in the award of contract for the Jammu and Kashmir Employees Health Care Insurance Scheme and release of about ₹60 crore in 2017-18. The allegation mainly pertained to the process adopted and rates fixed under the scheme.
According to the agency, the State administration found that the process for selecting the insurer was initiated in February 2017 and a consultant appointed via competitive bidding. A notice-inviting tender was then issued in June 2018 and the new insurer selected in 2018 through competitive bidding. Under the new scheme, an insurance of Rs.6 lakh per annum per employee/pensioner on a premium of Rs.8,777 (employees) and Rs.22,291 (pensioners) had been fixed. Following protests, the contract was cancelled by Malik in October 2018. He was the J&K Governor from August 2018 to October 2019.
(Manas Dasgupta)
