Z Lohe
The unearthing and exposure of the embezzlement of Public Distribution System(PDS) items particularly the hoarding of rice at two private go-downs in Dimapur by ACAUT probably shocked the Minister in-charge of Food and Civil Supplies (F&CS) Department, the stockists and the officials of F&CS. The misappropriation of PDS items as Kerosene, edible oil, pulses, wheat, sugar and rice in Nagaland is not a recent indulgence. Even during those years of Congress regimes, questions on misuse of the items used do crop up during Assembly sessions. However, the difference between the misuse of the PDS items in the past and the present practice is the magnitude of its misappropriation.
Had not my memory failed me, Mr. K. Hollohon was the last F&CS minister, not as Chief Minister, since then this portfolio has been kept by the successive Chief Ministers. Despite of unsatisfactory performances even in those days, the Supply Minister in the past used to attract maximum visitors as there was the practice of ordinary public getting sub-allotment of any PDS items for personal use or for public distribution in needy areas on payment at subsidised rate. In fact, any of those PDS items used to permeate down to the level of villages since there was so much accessibility of the elected representatives and the general public alike to Supply Minister in those days.
The piecemeal allocation of PDS items to individuals or group on demand came to an end since DAN led by NPF came to power in 2003. As long as the accessibility of ordinary citizens to Supply Minister continued, the general public was aware of the State’s quota of PDS items from Delhi. Whereas, when the new system of not entertaining the public for piecemeal allotment of any PDS items came into force, the public was forced to lose track of what and how much Nagaland receives from Delhi had not the figures of State quota been disclosed by ACAUT recently.
After the general applicants warded off, the stockists, in local Naga names, have taken over the F&CS Department. Out of ACAUT’s exposures, it is now found that those few stockists are almost regularised dealers for the PDS items regularly given month-wise by GOI particularly for the poorer section in Nagaland. Those stockists named in the exposure are found to enjoy monopoly as they are indispensable to F&CS Department in Nagaland. Whether these people run Nagaland’s F&CS Department or vice versa is the question at the expense of the poor public. Possibly, these stockists do wield much political power in Nagaland as they collectively mint perhaps huge amount of money out of disposal of PDS items to open market or to Para military forces for Supply Minister and his cohorts.
In the latest developments, the ACAUT’s detection and exposure of how the stockists in connivance with F&CS Deptt. have been hoarding and disposing the PDS rice to open market or to Para military force at highly profitable rates had indeed torched the hornet’s nest. The old adage goes that the crab will definitely counter attack your hand when you put it into the crab’s hole. Exactly, the ACAUT did put its hand into the den of the joint venture of Supply Minister, the F&CS and the stockists and so the repercussion. The reaction of F&CS Deptt. was the most prompt action of the year, and the hyper sensitivity of the Supply Minister and his F&CS Deptt. is well understood. The justification given by F&CS in local media on 12.12.2016 is hardly convincing regarding replacing gunny bags with plastic bags. Agreed that torn gunny bags among thousand bags will be natural, but as per pictures published by ACAUT every gunny bag seemed to be replaced or in the process of replacement is definitely fishy. The explanation for repackaging to avoid spillage and wastage invites more questions as to while F&CS cares for spillage of rice from few bags, whether pilferage of thousands of bags is ever noticed by the Department. The explanation has created bigger rooms for doubt.
The F&CS Deptt. tried its best to drag ACAUT and CCN into legality on the ground of intrusion. Not having legal knowledge myself, I question as to how the general public deal with exigencies. For instance, when a thief in action is noticed, whether the finder rushes to nearest Police Station to file FIR before laying hand on the thief? In this respect, while giving due importance to coddle formalities, the law abiding citizens are made to become the victims of lawless people. In the case of rice scam in question, the detection of illegal activities of F&CS in hobnob with the valued stockists by ACAUT and CCN was construed as taking law into its own hand. Is disposing the subsidised rice allotted to Nagaland by GOI in the open market by F&CS through the private stockists at market rate legal? Is intrusion into the two godowns by ACCAUT and CCN and the subsequent exposures of those activities illegal? Which is in the interest of the public and which one is against the public interest? The Chief Minister who has been in-charge of F&CS since he took over power from his predecessor, had indicted ACCAUT in a function in Dimapur as published in local papers on 18.12.2016 saying ‘no one was above the law and no individual or group should take law into their own hands’. Yes, I agreed with him that everyone including the Chief Minister TR Zeliang is under the law. He tried to teach ACAUT about the law of the land but whether he has learnt the law he is talking about is the question. Diverting PDS items including rice to open market or to supply it to paramilitary on sale is above the law. As much as every citizen in the country is under the law of the land, that much of the Minister in-charge of F&CS and all the officials of F&CS are too under the same law. That law prohibits abuse of power delegated to them for personal gains at the cost of the general public.
Although NPCC may not have that strength to speak like angels, it raised pertinent antecedent of NPF led DAN as “corruption and graft are the trademark of NPF Govt”. In a brazen defence of its Govt., the NPF termed ACAUT’s actions as ‘clumsy rhetoric devoid of anything worth logical or ethical’. ‘The style and method that was adopted to carry out the entire exercise itself has manifested volumes of lawless acts...’ Thus, the belief of NPF is siphoning rice meant for the public of the State of Nagaland is lawful and ethical. The statement of defence of illegal activities in F&CS Deptt. indeed befits NPF very well.
Meanwhile, in a show of arrogance and a total disregard of the concern of the conscientious citizens in Dimapur under the umbrella of ACAUT and CCN, the NPF Govt. dastardly used its police forces to suppress the democratic and peaceful gathering of people in Dimapur on 15.12.2016. Managing to disperse the gathering with teargas and water cannon cannot frighten the movement of the people against corruption. Rather the prance and glitzy actions of police on that day should have strengthened the spirit of the movement barring those infected with political virus already.
Using water cannon against those who gathered to show their solidarity against rice scam was a wastage. The cannon should have been used against Supply Minister and the officials of F&CS to clean the much PDS scam muddied images. Also, use of teargas on the gathering was a wastage too as sooner or later teargas will have to be used to smoke out all those who are responsible for consuming public rice like hogs.
