By Our Reporter
SHILLONG: The police are likely to file a charge sheet against the former Rangbah Shnong of Mawsynram village Artowel Kharshandi who, as a fair price shop dealer had denied 17 families the PDS items for several months during the period from 2002 to 2010.
“We are likely to file a charge sheet against the Rangbah Shnong very shortly,” a senior police official informed here on Wednesday.
According to the senior police official, the police in fact are pursuing with the investigation despite the court disposing off the case after the Rangbah Shnong and the 17 families settled the matter among them in a compromise.
Earlier, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has directed the State Government to prosecute the fair price shop dealer for denying the17 families in Dongrum locality of Mawsynram village in East Khasi Hills their right to avail food grains supplied by the government in the village.
“We have been briefed by the Government officials that both the parties have arrived into a compromise. But we have told the Government officials that the fair price shop dealer should be prosecuted since he has committed a major crime by denying the families of their right which is not pardonable as per the law,” NHRC Registrar (Law) AK Garg told reporters here on Wednesday.
Garg said that the commission has insisted the Government to prosecute the fair price shop dealer immediately.
It may be recalled that the affected families had alleged that PDS items including rice and sugar meant for BPL, AAY and APL beneficiaries was not distributed for many months in between the mentioned years.
The residents also alleged that after the wrong doings of the Rangbah Shnong and his wife Asorda Marbaniang (who is the fair price shop dealer) was highlighted, the Rangbah Shnong had allegedly tried to take away ration cards from some BPL families in order to scare them.