MANGALDAI: Darrang District Commissioner Munindra Nath Ngatey, while taking a serious note on the alleged financial anomalies in supply and procurement of goods and services under the District Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) during the period from 2020-22 by fraudulent practices involving a close network of some contractor firms and a section of government officials and staff, has ordered for a magisterial inquiry.
District Commissioner Ngatey has ordered the probe in response to a complaint submitted to him by one Hiteswar Deka of Sipajhar on the basis of the documental evidences collected with the help of RTI Act. The District Commissioner informed the media persons here that the probe will be conducted by Additional District Commissioner Upasana Dutta and she will submit the inquiry report within the next 3-4 days and necessary punitive action will be taken against anyone found guilty in the inquiry.
Complainant Hiteswar Deka in his petition sought action against proprietors of two local supplier firms for siphoning off public money by fraudulent means like opening duplicate bank account and using inactive GST numbers. As an example, it has been alleged that in the month of September in 2021, one firm received a total amount of Rs 2.4 lakh against providing five boats for four days for relief and management of flood in areas under Mangaldai and Dalgaon Revenue Circle through a duplicate bank account in the Mangaldai branch of the Bandhan Bank instead of its original account in the local branch of AGVB. Further, the GST number used in the bill was allegedly inactive. Moreover, the complainant has claimed that proprietor of one firm signed the bill vouchers instead of the proprietors of the other firm, thereby establishing a close nexus between the proprietors of both the firms.
Meanwhile, talking to this correspondent, Hiteswar Deka said that it had come to light from the information received through RTI that the duplicate account had been used in many occasions to receive payments involving a huge amount. He further stated that suspecting the same nature of fraudulent exercises by the two firms to siphon off public money since 2016, including during the Covid-19 pandemic period and in the Garukhuti Project, information was sought under RTI. However, most of the information is yet to be furnished by the office of the District Commissioner. He further claimed that both the firms used to enjoy undue privilege in the District Commissioner’s establishment.
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