Agartala, Nov 25 (IANS) The officials and functionaries of the Tripura Cricket Association (TCA) staged a protest in front of the Tripura Police Headquarters on Monday demanding immediate arrest of former office bearers of the state cricket body accusing in a “multi-crore financial scam involving the procurement and installation of floodlights at the two cricket stadiums in Agartala.
The protest follows after the Special Investigation Team (SIT), formed by the government on the orders of Tripura High Court.
TCA sources said that earlier FIR was FIR filled with the police into the alleged “corruption on the procurement and installation of LED floodlights at the Maharaja Bir Bikram cricket stadium and another stadium in Agartala” but so far there has been no arrest of those found involved with the financial scam.
Holding placards highlighting the “floodlighting scam” in two cricket stadiums MBB stadium and the under-construction Narsingarh stadium in West Tripura district, the TCA members and officials demanded immediate arrest of the accused.
The cricket body members alleged that a section of the previous management of the TCA “done massive financial misappropriations without consulting the general body or adhering to technical guidelines”.
A TCA member told the media that in 2021, two-lifetime members of the TCA raised concerns about irregularities in the procurement and installation of high-mast floodlights at the MBB Cricket Stadium.
The allegations pointed to mismanagement by the then-concerned official of TCA, who bypassed approval protocols, he claimed.
The aggrieved members earlier filed a petition in the Tripura High Court, leading to the formation of the SIT by the state government in August 2023 to investigate the matter.
According to the TCA members, the SIT’s findings were presented to the Crime Branch of Tripura police, which registered an FIR against those involved.
However, TCA members claimed that no arrests have been made yet, prompting their demand for swift action.
The present TCA management has highlighted serious technical and procedural flaws in the execution of contracts for floodlight installations.
At the MBB Stadium, four high-mast flood lights with 78 LED units each were installed at a reported cost of Rs14 crores.
Similarly, the cost of the Narsingarh stadium project ballooned from the initially approved Rs 10.5 crores to over Rs 24 crores.
The protesting members emphasised that the High Court’s directive and SIT’s findings should be acted upon promptly, with arrests and further investigations to ensure justice.
This protest underscores growing discontent within the cricketing community in Tripura, as stakeholders call for transparency and accountability in managing funds meant for the development of sports infrastructure.
–IANS
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