The Central Bureau of Investigation, probing the multi-crore rupees scam of North Cachar Hills district in Assam, has started investigating the irregularities in five departments of the district council by taking over the possession of records.
Disclosing that Northeast zonal CBI DIG himself visited the council headquarters at Halflong to coordinate the investigation, sources told this newspaper that CBI has started examining the documents of public work department, public health engineering, social welfare and agriculture department in which irregularities of hundreds of crores of public money has been alleged. Indicating that CBI investigation will follow the recommendations of National Investigation Agency which earlier probed scam to bust the nexus of militants and politicians siphoning off development fund flowing to the district council, sources clarified that there was no specific time-frame or specific period stated to restrict the investigation of the agency. “The CBI is going to probe the scam since the inception of the district council if records are available,” the CBI sources said while ruling out any possibility of tampering with evidence now.
“We have taken over the documents available with the district council and nobody can tamper with document as it was feared earlier,” the CBI sources said. The CBI sources also informed that they have not started issuing summon to the accused as they are still in the process of streamlining the documentary records of the council which was in a very bad shape. The investigation is significant as names of many politicians also figured in it.
The NIA in its chargesheet filed in one of the two cases had recommended CBI investigation into the financial irregularities that it found in course of investigation. Though, initially Assam chief minister Tarun Gogoi refused to order CBI investigation, the home ministry compelled the state to order a probe by CBI. The agency has registered five cases following the recommendation of the state government for investigation.