ITANAGAR, 17 Sep: An employee of post office in Tawang district has been arrested for alleged embezzlement of government funds worth Rs 39.25 lakh, police said on Thursday.

Acting on a complaint by the postal department, the accused, a multi-tasking staffer of the Tawang post office, identified as Sangeeta Ale (46), was taken into custody on 14 September, Tawang Superintendent of Police Tasi Darang said.

According to the police, Inspector of Post Office (Bomdila Postal Subdivision) H Nilamai Singh filed a written complaint on 13 September, stating that a financial verification, conducted at the Tawang post office on 7 September, unearthed major accounting discrepancies.

During the inspection, it was revealed that Ale failed to account for a total of Rs 39.25 lakh as of 10 September, the complainant said.

"The unaccounted sum included Rs 34.49 lakh collected as postal life insurance (PLI) and rural postal life insurance (RPLI) premiums between 1 January, 2023, and 31 May, 2024, which was neither deposited into official accounts nor produced despite repeated reminders," Singh said in the complaint.

An unremitted counter cash amount of Rs 4.75 lakh was found missing, he claimed.

"Upon initial questioning by the postal authorities, the accused admitted the shortage and submitted a written undertaking acknowledging that she had misappropriated the public funds," the complainant said.

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

"The accused was arrested on 14 September after adhering to all legal formalities, and has been remanded to police custody. Further investigation into the matter is underway," the SP added. (PTI, with DIPRO input)