DIMAPUR, FEBRUARY 7 (MExN): The Against Corruption and Unabated Taxation (ACAUT) Nagaland today stated that the recent incident of fuel tankers being burned at Khatkati, Lahorijan, Assam is “proof that fuel adulteration still continues in full swing, showing no sign of stopping despite the fact that matter is subjudice in the Court.”
A press release from ACAUT Chairman, Tia Longchar and Co-Chairman, Simon Kelio said that in 2017, civil society organizations, “dissatisfied with the State Government’s Special Investigation Team’s (SIT) shoddy reports and findings on fuel adulteration,” formed a Coordination Committee on Fuel Adulteration (CCOFA) comprising of several CSOs and filed a PIL to bring in the CBI to further investigate the matter of fuel adulteration.
In the CCOFA’s PIL, it was stated that the SIT report was a “mere façade to shield corrupt officials, politicians and the kingpins of fuel adulteration,” the ACAUT said.
It informed that ACAUT had also filed an FIR at West police station and the matter is under the Court of the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Dimapur. It reminded that ACAUT had also “busted fuel adulteration units in and around Dimapur during which numerous tankers, containers with thousands of liters of kerosene, various chemicals and equipments for adulterating fuel were found in mid 2016.”
The ACAUT said “it was also found out that fuel adulteration was not only an inter-district business with kingpins running numerous petrol pumps throughout Nagaland but a fully fledged inter-state lucrative business.”
It further informed that one of the main accused in the fuel adulteration case, one Dhinanath Shah was arrested on October 1, 2017, and a case was registered at Rangia police station in Kamrup district of Assam.
“After the exposure of fuel pilferage in Dimapur, this hardened criminal shifted his adulterating unit to Lahorijan in Assam within a radius of few kilometers from Dimapur and continues this illegal operation with impunity due to the kickbacks received by the beneficiaries,” the ACAUT alleged.
“When such matter of public importance is sub-judice in the Court, unwanted elements are taking undue advantage of its delay,” it lamented and urged the Court to expedite the case.
ACAUT Nagaland further urged the Nagaland Lokayukta to take cognizance on what it termed was “illicit malpractice where the fuel adulterating units are procuring kerosene from government supplies meant for public.”
