Shocking ITV drama Mr Bates vs The Post Office was a particularly painful watch for Seema Misra, 48…
Watching the ITV drama Mr Bates vs The Post Office was incredibly difficult for Seema Misra. Seema was eight weeks pregnant when she was sentenced to 15 months in prison, accused of stealing money from her employer, the Post Office. More than 700 postmasters were caught up in the scandal, prosecuted for fraud, theft and false accounting, all due to IT errors. Seema, 48, says, “I couldn’t stop crying. I felt like I was back in a prison cell.”
The Horizon accounting system, introduced in January 1999 and built by Fujitsu, was designed to manage financial transactions and accounting processes at Post Office branches. Sub-postmasters, such as Seema, were told it would make their lives easier, but for many, its errors led to financial ruin, jail time, and, tragically, four took their own lives.
Former sub ‐postmaster Alan Bates – played by Toby Jones – was key in bringing attention to the issues after he lost £65,000. He led a group of sub-postmasters, including Seema, in taking legal action against the Post Office, alleging that the Horizon system was flawed and the Post Office had not adequately addressed their concerns.
In 2019, the High Court in the UK ruled in their favour and found that the Post Office had not acted fairly, ordering them to pay significant compensation. Paula Vennells was the chief executive of the Post Office from 2009 to 2019, when the abuses were at their worst. Over a million people signed a petition demanding that Ms Vennells should lose her CBE, which she has now given up voluntarily. The inquiry, which has been running since 2020, has resumed. Seema explains, “We took over the running of a village post office in West Byfleet, Surrey, in 2005. I was the sub-postmistress and my husband, Davinder, now 52, oversaw the shop attached to it. Our five-year-old son, Aditya, settled quickly into our new home.” On the first day, a trainer from the Post Office observed Seema using the computer system, but when she tried to balance the books, the system showed she was £80 short. “The trainer said, ‘Well, it’s never penny for penny’, and I thought, if it doesn’t work while he’s here, what chance have I got?” says Seema.
Money continued to go missing – at first it was small amounts, less than £100, but Seema was held responsible for any losses, so she started putting in her own money to balance the books. She says, “I phoned the helpline and was told any errors in the system would correct themselves – and that ours was the only post office having this problem. Three months later an audit showed there was a shortfall in my accounts of £3,600. I was warned that I migh
