Ranchi, March 5 (IANS) Ruling party MLAs cornered the government in the Assembly on Wednesday over a Rs 100 crore embezzlement scam in Jharkhand’s Drinking Water and Sanitation Department and sought action against more officers involved in embezzlement of funds.
Opposition legislators also joined them, demanding accountability.
During the Question Hour, Congress Legislature Party leader Pradeep Yadav raised the issue of fraudulent withdrawals through fake accounts in the department’s Swarnarekha division.
Citing a Finance Department investigation report, he stated, “Several engineers have been found involved, yet only cashier Santosh Kumar has faced action.”
In response, Minister-incharge Yogendra Prasad assured the House of a departmental enquiry, promising a report within seven days.
However, ruling JMM MLA Stephen Marandi and Congress MLA Rameshwar Oraon rejected the assurance, alleging deliberate delays in taking action.
Marandi accused officials of shielding the executive engineer, while Oraon warned of a possible cover-up.
JMM MLAs Mathura Mahato and Hemlal Murmu dismissed the departmental probe as a “whitewash”. “If multiple officials are named in the Finance Department report, why is only the cashier being targeted?” they questioned.
They demanded an FIR against Chief Engineer Prabhat Kumar Singh, Executive Engineer Chandrashekhar, and other officials.
BJP MLA Naveen Jaiswal remarked, “If ruling party MLAs have to fight so hard for action, one can imagine how the government handles issues raised by the Opposition.”
As dissatisfaction grew, Pradeep Yadav threatened to stage a dharna inside the House.
Following a heated half-hour exchange, Minister Yogendra Prasad reiterated his promise of action within seven days, after which the Speaker postponed further discussion until then.
Earlier, the BJP MLAs staged a walkout from the Jharkhand Assembly during a debate on the state budget alleging bias against the Opposition.
Speaking to the media outside the House, senior BJP leader and former Chief Minister Babulal Marandi accused Speaker Rabindra Nath Mahato of favouring the ruling party. “The Speaker is running the House arbitrarily. Ruling party MLAs get more time to speak, while the Opposition’s voice is systematically suppressed,” he alleged.
–IANS
skp/rad
