Minister of State for Home Affairs Kiren Rijiju, his cousin and several senior government officials are allegedly involved in a Rs 450-crore scam related to a 600-MW hydroelectric project in Arunachal Pradesh, reported The Indian Express. Chief Vigilance Officer Satish Verma of Eastern Electric Power Corporation has named several people, including the minister, in a report sent to the CVC, Central Bureau of Investigation and the Ministry of Power in July this year. The report pertains to the Kameng Hydroelectric Project, one of the state’s biggest such undertakings.
After receiving the 129-page report, the CBI sent teams for surprise visits twice since July, but the agency has not yet filed a case in this regard. Verma was transferred to the Central Reserve Police Force in Tripura after he was pulled up for absence from duty. He has said he was not at his duty because he was investigating the project.
Verma further said that the contractor, Patel Engineering Limited, had tried to make money from the project by producing fake transportation bills and records that were worth “hundreds of crores of rupees”. The reimbursement of the bills was stopped after the report was filed. However, the MoS reportedly wrote to the Ministry of Power, asking them to release the funds.
Rijiju’s cousin Goboi Rijiju is a sub-contractor in the project. He reportedly met Verma after he had sent his report. Verma has attached audio recordings of his meeting with Rijiju’s cousin, who is purportedly heard offering “any help you need from Bhaiya [Kiren Rijiju].”
The Congress party has demanded Rijiju’s resignation or sacking till an investigation into the allegations is complete. The party has also claimed to have audio evidence of Rijiju’s involvement in the scam, NDTV reported.
Rijiju, however, rejected the allegations, calling it a planted story. “Those who planted the story will be beaten up with shoes when they will come to our area,” he said, according to NDTV. The minister also called for an apology from the Congress, saying all contracts were given and payments were made during the party’s term. “I just forwarded a memorandum,” he said, according to ANI.
The project is related to the construction of two dams for the 600-MW Kameng Hydro Electric Project. The dams will be constructed over the Bichom and Tenga rivers. One of the biggest hydro power projects undertaken in the state, it started in 2005. The project is near completion.
Corrections: The story has been edited to clarify that Chief Vigilance Officer Satish Verma submitted the report in July 2016.
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