VPP’s FIRs against ex-KHADC MDC Donkupar Sumer
SHILLONG, April 18: The police have sought permission from a local court to register a case after two FIRs were filed against former Khasi Hills Autonomous District Council (KHADC) MDC, Donkupar Sumer for his allegation that Voice of the People Party (VPP) chief Ardent Miller Basaiawmoit had misappropriated the Council’s funds during his tenure as its Chief Executive Member (CEM).
The FIRs were lodged by Basaiawmoit and the VPP’s media cell member Rusievan Shangpliang.
The police on Thursday said they sought the court’s permission as the charges levelled against the VPP chief are defamatory in nature.
“The defamation FIR of the VPP is non-cognisable. We will register the case once we receive the permission from the court,” the police said.
In his FIR lodged with the Sadar police station on April 15, Basaiawmoit said Sumer had accused him of misappropriating Rs 30 lakh and terminating Khasi employees from the Council. He dubbed the charges, which Sumer made while addressing a meeting of the NPP recently, as “false, baseless and incorrect”.
Mentioning that a clip of Sumer’s speech is available on the T7 news channel on YouTube which was uploaded on April 13, Basaiawmoit said, “By making such statements in the public domain, aspersions and vilification have been cast upon me, an elected member of the Meghalaya Legislative Assembly.”
“It is noteworthy to mention that such statements were made with the sole intent of defaming, maligning, and spreading false, concocted, and fabricated information to the public at large,” the VPP chief said in his complaint, adding that the statements amount to criminal offences under Section 499 and other relevant provisions of the Indian Penal Code, 1860.
Shangpliang also filed the FIR with the Sadar police station.
On Wednesday, Sumer had lodged an FIR against Basaiawmoit levelling charges of theft, cheating, forgery and misappropriation of funds.
In the FIR lodged with the Lumdiengjri police station, he had alleged that the VPP chief had committed the crimes when he was serving as the CEM of the KHADC.
According to Sumer’s charge, Basaiawmoit had siphoned off public money in the garb of acquiring a plot of land for the KHADC.
He further alleged that the former CEM merely signed an invalid document “as an eyewash” to show that the land was acquired and thus, siphoned off Rs 35,25,039 from the accounts of the Council.