The Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) has asked all public sector banks and insurance companies to ensure that they seek recommendations from its advisory board regarding all cases of fraud involving Rs 3 crore and more. At the time of approaching the commission for advice in respect to any prosecution sanction case, the chief vigilance officer (CVO) should mention whether the case is eligible to be referred to the advisory board along with the date of reference besides details of the recommendations given by it, the CVC said.

The probity watchdog had issued an order in this regard to the chief executives and CVOs of all public sector banks and insurance companies on January 21.

A CVO acts as an extended arm of the CVC to deal with corruption cases.

The CVC had on January 6 expanded the ambit of the Advisory Board for Banking and Financial Frauds (ABBFF), which conducts first level examination of large bank frauds, to cover all such cases involving amounts of Rs 3 crore and above besides examining the role of all levels of officials.

Earlier, the board was required to be consulted regarding banking and financial frauds of Rs 50 crore and above before recommendations or references were made to investigative agencies such as the Central Bureau of Investigation by the respective public sector banks and financial institutions.

CVOs of the concerned organisations should ensure that advice of the ABBFF is also obtained in respect of all cases that are covered under the extended scope of examination by the board, the CVC said in its order.

It directed that all concerned organisations should strictly comply with its order.

The CVC said in respect of all eligible cases, CVOs may ensure that recommendations or advice of the ABBFF is obtained as per the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) circulated from the commission.

General manager level officials and those above it, whole-time directors, including former officials or former whole-time directors, come under the ambit of the board.

The advisory board may also periodically carry out frauds analysis in the financial system and give inputs for any policy formulation related to frauds to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and the CVC, the commission had said in its January 6 order.

The board, headed by former vigilance commissioner and the then chairman and managing director (CMD) of Indian Bank T M Bhasin, was reconstituted for two years with effect from August 21 last year.