Arunachal woman Post Office staffer arrested for alleged Rs 39.25-lakh fund embezzlement

A woman working as a multi-tasking staffer at the Tawang Post Office in Arunachal Pradesh has been arrested for allegedly embezzling government funds amounting to Rs 39.25 lakh, police said.

According to Tawang Superintendent of Police Tasi Darang, the accused was arrested on September 14 following a complaint filed by the postal department.

The case came to light after a financial verification conducted at the Tawang Post Office on September 7 reportedly uncovered major discrepancies in the accounts.

Inspector of Post Office (Bomdila Postal Sub Division) H Nilamai Singh filed a written complaint on September 13, stating that the woman had allegedly failed to account for a total of Rs 39.25 lakh as of September 10.

According to the complaint, around Rs 34.49 lakh of the unaccounted amount comprised premiums collected under Postal Life Insurance (PLI) and Rural Postal Life Insurance (RPLI) between January 1, 2023, and May 31, 2024. The amount was allegedly neither deposited into the official accounts nor produced despite repeated reminders.

The complaint also alleged that an additional Rs 4.75 lakh in counter cash remained unremitted and was found missing.

Postal authorities reportedly questioned the accused initially, following which she allegedly admitted to the shortage and submitted a written undertaking acknowledging the alleged misappropriation of public funds.

Based on the complaint, a case was registered at Tawang Police Station, and the investigation was taken up by Officer-in-Charge N Angu.

Police said the accused was arrested after completing the required legal formalities and was subsequently remanded to police custody.

Further investigation is underway to establish the full circumstances of the alleged financial irregularities and trace the unaccounted funds.