Seven Coimbatore panchayat union presidents stripped off cheque-signing authority

Seven panchayat union presidents in the district were barred from signing cheques on Tuesday and the emergency powers are temporarily assigned to Regional Development Officers, the district administration said.

They are Somayampalayam panchayat president P. Rangaraj, Poornima Rangaraj of Marudhur, Geetha Thangaraj of Kunnathur, S. Ramesh of Ashokapuram, Palaniammal of Malumichampatti, Vimala of Sikkadasampalayam and Selvanayagam of Thensithur.

“Notices were issued under Section 205 under the Tamil Nadu Panchayat Act 1994 to them on different dates seeking explanation on inconsistencies found in accounts. The officials replied to the notice and a personal hearing was held with the department. After this, they handed over a written statement, which will be submitted for consideration to the respected tahsildars. Now, the Collector temporarily stripped them of their financial power to sign cheques under Section 203 of the Act, to stop them from misusing their authority any further,” said Coimbatore District Panchayat Development (PAPD) Project Director Kamalakkannan. The statement said that the order will stay till the panchayat presidents are cleared of the charges.

Financial inconsistencies to the tune of ₹1,31,44,681 were found in Malumichampatti and ₹39,500 in Sikkadasambalayam panchayats. Land and infra-related issues were found in Ashokapuram, Kunnathur and Marudhur following inspection reports between 2020-2022, according to the department.