Our Correspondent
Mokokchung | July 25
A little known Guwahati-based “NGO” by the name “Specular North East,” having branches in Nagaland and dealing in Micro-Financing is in deep trouble, with its managing director being accused by employees for duping innocent depositors of some more than 45 lakhs of rupees during the last nearly two years.
Mokokchung Police Station I personnel assisted by Specular North East employees have arrested the Managing Director, one RK Nath alias Shampu Das from Guwahati on July 22. The accused has been brought to Mokokchung. He has been arrested on a criminal complaint case filed by the SNE Mokokchung branch employees on April 24, 2010. Nath alias Das is due to appear in court on July 26.
Although Specular North East deals with finance, the official brochure of the NGO declares “It (Specular North East) is not a bank not a financial company; it is a Non Profitable Philanthropic Organization only”. It promises help from central government agencies, and also introducing various loan policies to its members such as availing motor vehicle loans and project loans among others.
“This is a voluntary and non-profitable philanthropic organization doing Micro-Finance,” the brochurr declares. According to Specular North East, Mokokchung Branch ‘Special Executive Officer’, T Sashi Longchar and “Executive Officer” T Imna Sunep, the SNE was established in Mokokchung after an advertisement was flouted in the newspapers.
They went to the head office in Guwahati where SNE officials convinced the Naga youths that the SNE is a government registered and is a “non profit philanthropic organization”.
The Mokokchung branch office was ultimately opened in September 2008. After which the SNE Mokokchung branch employees went about the district convincing people to deposit money with the NGO on “daily, weekly and monthly” basis, with the assurance that the money will be returned after “maturation” with a six percent interest. Besides, the SNE promised to give loans to interested depositor after six months, as long as there was a guarantor from among the depositors. It was disclosed that there are other SNE branches all over Nagaland. The Mokokchung branch alone looks after Mokokchung town, Mangkolemba and Tuli sub-divisions and Tuensang district with around 4000-5000 depositors as members.
The SNE Mokokchung branch employed around 74 educated unemployed youths in different categories, with promises of lucrative salaries.
All went well for sometime, until last September 2009, when the depositors on ‘maturation’ of their deposited amount demanded their money back. The SNE head office in Guwahati made excuses that the money would be paid in the coming month.
However, under immense pressure, the Mokokchung SNE branch officials distributed the ‘matured’ deposited money back to the depositors from the ‘deposited’ amount with the SNE, and the formal report was sent to the head office. However, it could not be carried out for long, as the deposited amount bounced (or ‘exhausted’) and the depositors were getting angry with the SNE Mokokchung Branch employees. In the meantime, the managing director, RK Nath went elusive, and the branch employees could not make proper contact with the head office in Guwahati.
As a last resort the SNE employees, feeling cheated, lodged a complaint in April, 2010; the magistrate in Mokokchung gave a summon order to RK Nath in May 11-June 11, 2010. However, he failed to respond to the summons. Finally Mokokchung Police personnel assisted by the SNE Mokokchung Branch employees went to Guwahati and arrested Nath.
In this connection, two SNE Mokokchung branch employees said RK Nath still has to pay more than Rs 45 lakhs to the depositors. Overall money collected came to around Rs 1 crore, out of which about Rs 60 lakhs have been cleared, still some 600-700 depositors have to get their ‘matured’ money back, they said. Besides, if the debt of other districts branches is also counted, then the amount would come to around Rs 80 lakhs, SNE employees said.
Interestingly, even the salaries of the employees have not been paid. SNE employees said that the head office in Guwahati directed them to draw the salary for the Mokokchung branch employees from the money of the depositors. However, the employees refused saying that it is not proper. The amount money of the pending salaries comes to around Rs 18 lakhs, it was informed.
In this regard, the two SNE officials have requested the depositors to kindly bear with the Mokokchung SNE branch, as all efforts are being made to recover the deposits. A team of lawyers has been hired to fight the case and SNE Mokokchung branch will recover the amount, they promised.
