KVIB VC resigns, blames Erabot
Source: The Sangai Express
Imphal, July 02 2011:
Citing differences and discord with Commerce and Industry Minister Y Erabot who is also Chairman of the Manipur Khadi and Village Industry Board (KVIB), Vice Chairman of the Board A Sarat has submitted resignation letter.
Speaking to media persons at Manipur Press Club here this afternoon, A Sarat accused the Minister of making undue interference against his efforts to check misuse of funds by the Minister's men.
He said that he took the post of Vice-Chairman as Minister Erabot personally came to his house and offered the post.
"At that time, I thought Erabot as a sincere and upright Minister", Sarat said.
"Soon after assuming the post of Vice-Chairman, I started lobbying with Finance Department together with one RK Gokulchandra, a supporter of Erabot, to pay salaries for the staff which was pending for ten months then",
Sarat said.
To pay salaries for the staff and leave salaries for some staff, around Rs two crores were sanctioned.
"Out of the sanctioned amount, Gokulchandra asked me to deduct three per cent and to give him the deducted amount", the Vice-Chairman disclosed.
Sarat said that Gokulchandra was given Rs 3.5 lakhs after a prolonged negotiation even as he (Sarat) was deadly opposed to deduction from the amount which was meant for paying salaries to the Board's employees.
After this incident, Minister Erabot wrote an UO letter recommending RK Gokulchandra for the dismantling work of the Khadi Board's godown and garage.
The dismantling work would cost around Rs 96,000, according to the estimates of MANIDCO.
In accordance to the rules, KVIB took a decision to deposit the estimated amount as and when the fund was sanctioned.
Informing that around 20 posts are lying vacant in KVIB, Sarat further disclosed that Gokulchandra took Rs 50,000 each from two persons for appointing them to the vacant posts under Die-in-Harness scheme although the two persons belong to families which are economically quite unsound.
Nevertheless, Gokulchandra was asked to pay back and he did return the amount to the two persons.
All the works for Khadi Mela and awareness programmes were allotted to one N Budha in accordance to the instruction of Minister Erabot.
The work for putting six hoardings which costs Rs 1.20 lakh per hoarding was also allotted to one Khogen who is elder brother of RK Gokulchandra, again at the instruction of Erabot.
Although only three hoardings were put up, they made attempts to take the estimated amount for six hoardings.
However, they were not given the additional amount, Sarat conveyed.
He went on to claim that serious efforts were made to check taking graft money from loanees at Rs 35,000 each for Forward and Backward Linkage Scheme as well as to prevent issuance of loans without conducting spot verification.
"Against all my efforts to ensure proper utilization of KVIB funds according to guidelines, some of Minister's men misinformed the Minister.
Taking the words of his supporters, Minister Erabot issued an order on June 27 directing that all files should by-pass the Vice-Chairman", Sarat said.
"Under such circumstances and arm-twisting tactics, I prefer to resign on moral ground and I have submitted my resignation letter to the Minister", Sarat added.