Bengal Tables 28 CAG Reports After Four-Year Gap, Alleges Previous Government Violated Constitution

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led West Bengal government tabled 28 long-pending reports of the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) in the state Assembly on Saturday. State Finance Minister Swapan Dasgupta accused the previous Trinamool Congress (TMC) government of committing a 'constitutional lapse' by not presenting these reports during its tenure.

Dasgupta said that a special session of the Assembly would be convened to discuss the findings of the audit reports. 'It is the government's duty to present its shortcomings before the people,' he added.

The CAG reports cover fiscal years from 2020-21 to 2024-25. Among them, the audit on post-Cyclone Amphan relief and restoration works flagged serious irregularities. The CAG stated that the state's assessment of damages submitted for central assistance was 'exaggerated and unrealistically high' and lacked adequate evidence. It also noted that relief payments were made multiple times to thousands of beneficiaries, and assistance was disbursed using beneficiary lists prepared for an earlier cyclone.

The CAG report on the Sasthya Sathi health scheme found that the number of enrolled families was about 10% higher than the number of ration card holders, raising concerns about ineligible beneficiaries receiving benefits. Additionally, elections in 109 urban local bodies were delayed by six to 32 months, risking ineligibility for Central Finance Commission grants.

This is the first time in four years that CAG reports have been tabled in the Assembly. Principal Accountant General Bibhu Dutta Basunia said, 'After four years we got the opportunity to publish 28 audit reports. This report's aim is to improve the government's performance.'