SHILLONG: A citizen identified as Banri Kupar Wahlang has demanded a high level inquiry after alleging rampant corruption, swindling of funds and fudging of vouchers in 19-South Shillong Assembly Constituency under the present NCP legislator Sanbor Shullai.
Addressing a press conference here on Tuesday, Banri Kupar Wahlang resident of Kynjat Phutbol while quoting an RTI filed by them alleged that the sitting MLA Sanbor Shullai has plundered the MLA funds allocated to him by the Government.
Alleging that there is large scale fudging of vouchers, over-pricing of goods, fictitious purchases all of which are tell-tale of a scam of big magnitude, Wahlang added that the purchases of all items from sand to laptops were made through a phoney firm from Cherrapunjee
As per the RTI, Sanbor Shullai received Rs 94, 11,333 Lakh in 2013-14, Rs 89, 25,000 Lakh in 2014-15, Rs 96, 66,636 Lakh in 2015-16 and Rs 1, 43, 25,550 crores in 2016-17 and the Total fund received comes to Rs 4,23,28,519 (As on 31st March 2017)
Wahlang alleged that out of the total amount released by Municipal Board, he has purchased goods worth Rs 2.52 crore which works out to 52.71 % of the total money received which is a major deviation from the guidelines of the government.
“Instead of creating “useful public assets” the MLA has misused more than half of his allotted funds for giving trivial personal gifts with the sole -purpose of catching votes.” He told reporters.
Giving further details, Wahlang asserted that the MLA spent as much as Rs 50.50 lakh on 13000 “Healthy Serving Dinner sets” and “Multi-Purpose Health Food Sets”
“Even if all the residing families in the entire South Shillong constituency were to receive one Dinner set each, still there should be a huge surplus of undistributed dinner sets and the beneficiary list as submitted by the MLA has only 851 names,” he said while questioning the MLA as to where are the remaining 12,250 dinner sets.
According to Wahlang, the RTI reveals that these materials have been supplied by one K Lynrah having an address of Kongthong Cherrapunjee.
He also claimed that a discreet enquiry has revealed that these dinner sets were actually procured by the MLA from a firm in Kolkata and that the records in Byrnihat Taxation Gate will surely vouch for the fact that the dinner sets were sent by the Kolkata firm by road transport having proper Road Challan and other papers issued in the name of the MLA Sanbor Shullai.
As per Wahlang, the RTI further revealed that the MLA concerned has purchased 1780 plastic armless chairs at Rs 566 each costing Rs 3,56,000 but the best quality Neelkamal chairs cost in the local retail market is Rs 370 each and again it was procured from K. Lynrah of Sohra.