Friday, Jun 30, 2023 08:30 [IST]
Last Update: Friday, Jun 30, 2023 02:48 [IST]
Politically motivated case to defame me & CAP Sikkim: Ganesh
GANGTOK,: Citizen Action Party (CAP) Sikkim chief coordinator Ganesh Rai on Thursday spent about two hours in Melli police station giving his statements and replies on the Rs. 24 lakh loan scandal FIR lodged against him.
“I gave my statements and replied to all queries made by the investigation officer. I have also told the police that I will come and give my statements whenever my presence is needed in the police station,” Rai told media after exiting the Melli police station.
A group of Melli Dara Multi-Purpose Cooperative Society (MPCS) members had filed a complaint against Rai, alleging that he misappropriated Rs. 24 lakh loan granted to the MPSC members by SISCO Bank in 2014-15.
Rai was the then Melli Dara MPCS president.
Various IPC sections of cheating and forgery have been included in the FIR registered against the CAP-Sikkim leader.
At the outset, Rai maintained that the complaint and the police case were politically motivated to attack his credibility by the SKM government. This is a politically motivated allegation without any evidence and facts, it was done just to discredit me and pin me down, he said.
“Strong IPC sections have been added in the FIR. If we add the IPC sections, it comes to altogether 25 years of imprisonment. I am not concerned about it, rather I find it hilarious. I feel pity for the SKM government that within four months of CAP Sikkim being formed, they have reached a compulsion to file a fake FIR against me. They know that they are losing ground and their government is going away with CAP Sikkim coming to power (in 2024). This is their cowardice,” said the CAP Sikkim chief coordinator.
Rai had launched the CAP Sikkim on January 26, 2023 at Melli, his home town in South Sikkim.
“The SKM government wants to defame me with an aim to destabilize CAP Sikkim but people are aware about it. We will go to the people and make them understand the intentions behind this FIR. We will tell the truth to the people,” said Rai.
Rai added that he came to know through media about the FIR related to the loans granted to Melli Dara MPCS about a decade ago. “I was unwell for some days and outside the State. The moment I came to know about the FIR, I called the Melli police station SHO and took information. I was given time till June 30 to appear at the police station and give my statement,” he said.
To a question, the CAP Sikkim leader pointed out that the manager is chiefly responsible for all activities of any MPCS and the management is subjected to an audit.
“I have seen the list (of the 28 loanees), I had only recommended their names for the loans and not aware whether they got the loans or others took it. The manager should know about it and is responsible for it,” said Rai.
Asked if he is considering an anticipatory bail, the CAP Sikkim leader said: “I have not applied for any anticipatory bail. I will cooperate with the police. If the police think that only my arrest will help in conducting a transparent investigation, I am ready for it. They can arrest me and even send me to jail. I have not applied for anticipatory bail because I have done nothing wrong. I am ready for any level of investigation,” he said.
Rai was accompanied by a large number of CAP Sikkim functionaries and workers when he visited the Melli police station to record his statements.
‘Melli town under a huge risk’
Later, the CAP Sikkim leader took a spot inspection of the raging Teesta river flowing between Melli sides of Sikkim and West Bengal.
Rai told media that the river’s breadth has shrunk and its water flow is dangerously diverted towards the Sikkim side due to alleged mud dumping on Teesta river by the Railways project happening on the West Bengal side.
“A major disaster is lurking for Melli town and the local residents. Earlier, the river used to flow uniformly across the whole breadth. However, all the mud from the railway tunnel project are being dumped into the river. Due to this, the river’s breadth has decreased and river flow has been diverted towards the Melli side. It poses a huge risk to the people of Melli town,” said the CAP Sikkim leader.
Rai contended that the State government has so far remained indifferent to the safety concerns of Melli residents.
“The government should take immediate steps to protect Melli and its people. Since this is an inter-State matter, we will approach the Railways ministry and also communicate with the West Bengal authorities. We want to assure the people of Melli that CAP Sikkim will make all efforts to protect them,” said the CAP Sikkim chief coordinator.
