Aizawl: Mizoram’s main opposition Mizo National Front today stated that it stood by its allegations against health minister Lalrinliana Sailo that he possesses four drug licences in the name of his son, which were used for smuggling of banned drugs.
Quoting RTI information furnished by the directorate of health services, four drug licences numbers 02/04/0017 to 01/04/10/0020 were issued on April 28, 2010 to Jacob Lalrinpuia, an underage son of health minister Lalrinliana Sailo.
The wholesale and general licences are meant for dealing of drugs at Zokhawthar village on the Indo-Myanmar border in eastern Mizoram’s Champhai district and are valid till 2014, according to the RTI document obtained by the MNF.
The MNF further accused these drug licences were used for smuggling of the pseudoephedrine into the neighbouring Myanmar where they are manufactured into party drugs like crystal meth.
Reacting to the Congress party’s challenge to provide proof of the drug smuggling allegations, the MNF on Tuesday disclosed the name of the health minister’s son’s accomplice in the drug trafficking as Rampanmawia, a resident of Zarkawt, Aizawl. Rampanmawia had been arrested by the state’s excise and narcotic police on August 21, 2012 in connection with smuggling of pseudoephedrine, the MNF handout said.
Local-made machines for wrapping pseudoephedrine tablets were also recovered from this man. (It may be noted that smugglers unwrapped the tablets before smuggling them to Myanmar).
Whereas drug license should be given to only qualified persons, the health minister’s son was not only unqualified in terms of medical knowhow but was also underage. Whereas drug licence is general issued for the area where the licence holder lives, these four drug licences were issued for Zokhawthar village near the Myanmar border, many miles away from where the licence holder lives, Republic locality in Aizawl, the MNF said.
Rubbishing the health minister’s claim that his family possesses drug licence before India Independence in his late father’s name, the MNF challenged him to produce the licence number and the authority that issued the licence.
A drug licence is anyway supposed to automatically invalid if the licence holder dies, the statement said. (UNI)