Voice of the People Party (VPP) general secretary Ricky AJ Syngkon has confirmed that he will go ahead with a protest on Monday to put pressure on the state government to reinstate Lokayukta officials who were removed from their positions in December.
The VPP is adamantly opposed to the move, which it fears will weaken the anti-corruption Lokayukta body.
The opposition party first called for a protest last Friday to press for reinstatement of the three Lokayukta officials who were sacked by the state government unceremoniously by WhatsApp. The three were the Lokayukta’s Director of Inquiry and Prosecution Jainal Rymmai and two enquiry officers – Anil K Sangma and Rymphang Pde. It was this trio who had unearthed an alleged scam worth crores of rupees that purportedly involved a governing party MLA, Sanjay Sangma, who is also the brother-in-law of Chief Minister Conrad Sangma.
The state government justified the trio’s removal by stating that they were retired government officials and the Lokayukta rules require serving officials to hold the posts.
Syngkon, who has been named as the VPP’s candidate for the Shillong Lok Sabha seat in the forthcoming parliamentary elections, said that VPP leader and Nongkrem MLA Ardent M Basaiawmoit will also attend the protest, which is being held in the interest of the state. He added a hope that good sense prevails and the government takes the right actions to rectify the “grave mistake”.
Syngkon did not specify the protest venue, perhaps wary of the government banning it ahead of time.
Basaiawmoit in a video released to the media yesterday has threatened to intensify the agitation on Monday, declaring it a war against corruption.
He alleged that the government wants serving officers in the Lokayukta because retired officials cannot be intimidated like those still employed by the government can.
