SHILLONG: A fresh FIR has been filed against Francis Pondit R. Sangma at Shallang police station on Wednesday for allegedly signing a Rs 6-crore agreement with a firm for coal extraction and not paying the dues to the Rongding clan members in West Khasi Hills.
This comes two days after Kullang Coal Quarry owner Prohollad R. Sangma, of the Rongding Clan, had defended the former MLA saying all allegations were baseless.
A group of clan members residing in and around Shallang and Williamnagar filed the FIR on Wednesday, said Silman R. Sangma, Nongchram, Rongjeng, in a statement.
Silman said “Francis and Prohollad cannot rubbish the allegations for their own personal gain”. He also said the statement that Annie R. Sangma, who filed the first FIR at Mendipathar on behalf of 24 other clan members, does not belong to the clan “is wrong and unwarranted and Annie is very much the member of the Rongding-Rongrok-Rongmuthu clan”.
“Not only Annie but other clan members have been allotted with the quarry land by the same Nokma of the Reangdim A’king Land. Now the clan people are demanding that Francis immediately pay them their dues,” said Silman.
The FIR filed at Mendipathar police station had said the land at Reangdim A’king in West Khasi Hills, which was allotted to them, was leased out to Divyansh Power Gen. Pvt. Ltd. for 30 years by clan member Francis in April 2012.
The clan members had executed a general power of attorney to Francis for extraction of coal, but they did not get the due share, the Rongding clan members have alleged. The allegation of as many as 166 Rongdam clan members is that Sangma had taken an advance of Rs 6.1 crore from the firm for the land, but the money was not disbursed to the actual land owners.
