CBI books Padma Shree awardee Leela Samson over irregularities

New Delhi : The CBI has booked ace Bharatnatyam dancer and former Chairperson of Sangeet Natak Akademi Leela Samson for alleged "unfruitful expenditure" in Rs 7.02-crore renovation project of Koothambalam auditorium of Kalakshetra Foundation, Chennai, officials said Saturday.

Samson, a Padma Shri awardee and also a former chairperson of Central Board of Film Certification, has been booked along with the then officers of the Foundation: Chief Accounts Officer TS Murthi, Accounts Officer S Ramachandran, Engineering officer V Srinivasan and proprietor of CARD and Chennai Engineers, they said.

The CBI also conducted searches on the residential premises of the accused. In a complaint to the CBI, the Chief Vigilance Officer of the Culture Ministry has alleged that the officials of the Foundation awarded the contract for the renovation work to consultant architect CARD in violation of General Finance Rules (GFR), they said.

After conducting an inquiry in 2016, the Culture Ministry alleged that the 84-year old Foundation had spent Rs 62.20 lakh more than the estimated amount on the Rs 7.02-crore project.

The estimation given by the Central Public Works Department revealed that the contracts were awarded at a higher rate and the payments made to the contractors accordingly, according to an FIR registered in connection with the case.

Samson was the Director of the Foundation between May 06, 2005, and April 30, 2012. It was felt in 2006 that the auditorium built by the Foundation in 1985 needed renovation, they said.