Aizawl: Mizoram-based anti-corruption organisation Prism (People’s Right to Information Development Implementing Society of Mizoram) on Monday said it would not appear before a departmental inquiry committee on Kau-Tlabung and Tuipanglui mini-hydel projects.
A committee of Prism turned down the public health engineering department secretary-cum-presenting officer’s summon to appear as prosecution witness before the inquiry committee on the alleged misappropriation of fund in the two mini hydel projects.
In its reply to the presenting officer, Prism said, ”Prism filed a PIL in Gauhati High Court as it did not have trust in a departmental inquiry. Therefore, there is no point of appearing before a committee which we do not trust.”
The case is sub judice, the Prism’s letter also pointed out.
The presenting officer, in its letter on July 22, asked Prism president Vanlalruata and its general secretary Liantluanga to appear before the investigating officer during a hearing on July 26.
It may be recalled that Prism had lodged an FIR with the state Anti-Corruption Bureau (then Anti-Corruption Branch) in 2008 to investigate the alleged misappropriation of funds in the construction of two micro hydro projects — Kau-Tlabung and Tuipanglui–in southern Mizoram.
After a thorough investigation, vigilance department ordered ACB to register a criminal case against the concerned engineers on May 13, 2010, Prism president Vanlalruata said.
”The State Vigilance Department, however, ordered the bureau to withdraw the case on July 2, 2010 without stating any reason,” he said.
The government, in a confidential notification on July 2 last year, had decided to constitute a departmental inquiry into the case.
As a result, the special court (anti-corruption) on July 3 last year allowed the 13 engineers (of power and works departments), whose names had appeared in the ACB investigation, to withdraw their anticipatory bail petitions, he said.
Angered by this, Prism had last year filed a restoration PIL against the state government’s alleged withdrawal of a criminal case in this connection.
”We termed the government’s order to withdraw the case as an attempt to cover up a misdeed, which we felt was a clear indication that influential people were involved in the corruption,” Prism president said.
Earlier this year, the high court’s divisional bench comprising Justice T Vaiphei and Justice Hrishikesh Roy admitted the restoration petition after it had been rejected in October last year by Justice M Lokur of the high court. (UNI)