
NEZCC under CAG scanner for Rs 1.6 Crore investment
DIMAPUR NOV 21 (MExN): The Dimapur Police arrested one Tushar Bhatra of M/S Leafin India Limited, a non-banking finance company for swindling the North East Zone Cultural Center (NEZCC), Dimapur of Rupees 1 crore, which the center had invested in the said company, as fixed deposit for two years, from 6 August 1999 to 30 September 2001. The rate of interest on the deposit was 15% payable monthly and Rs 31.25 Lakhs was to be received as interest. However the NEZCC received only Rs 8.75 Lakhs during November 1999 to September 2001 in seven instalments of Rs 1.25 Lakhs. Suspicion was aroused when the NEZCC requested M/S LIL to refund the deposit in September 2002 but the company closed its Dimapur Branch office on grounds of bankruptcy, just a year after its inception i.e., December 1998. It was further investigated by the police that Leafin India Limited had received only 4 drafts, made through UBI, when it was actually 5 drafts that were supposed to have been received as receipts.
Bhatra is also under investigations for swindling another Rs 3 crores notable of them being Rs 20 Lakhs invested by local diary giant KOMUL, Rs 53 Lakhs invested by a Dimapur citizen identified as CK Sangtam and other individual and private investors.
SP Bidhu Shekar said that the developments started when the Dimapur police received an order from the court directing an enquiry into a transaction of Rs 1 crore involving the NEZCC and Bhatra which the former had invested in Bhatra’s company. Investigations revealed discrepancies in the mode of transactions made as well as the presence of incriminating documents that suggested duped cheques, incompatible monetary details and the whereabouts of the one crore investment made by the NEZCC. Bhatra was found to have personally accepted the money from the NEZCC and is believed to have diverted the money somehow. Investigations are still on regarding where Bhatra had stashed away the money as well as the deposits belonging to other private investors.
Meanwhile, there are reports that a former NEZCC Director from Manipur had invested Rs 1 crore from the corpus fund without authorization in the non-banking finance company and without the approval of the governing body and thus resulting in a loss of Rs 1.60 crores as the company closed its branch, according to the Comptroller and Auditor General’s report, 2005. The report further states that effective punitive action has not been taken in this regard. The Director is said to have placed the Rs 1 crore in a fixed deposit scheme of Leafin India Limited, Dimapur Branch. The registered office of the concern is located in Hyderabad. The rate of interest on the deposit was 15 percent payable monthly. The date of maturity of the deposit was September 30, 2001. Audit ascertained that Rs 31.25 lakh was to be received as interest on the deposit (August 1999 to September 2001). However, the NEZCC is said to have received only Rs 8.75 lakh during the period in seven instalments of Rs 1.25 lakh.
The Director had requested Leafin India Limited to refund the amount of fixed deposit in September 2000. But the company did not respond and their Branch Office at Dimapur was closed. NEZCC had accordingly filed a money suit against the private company and which is still reportedly pending.
The discrepancy on the part of the Director was taken up by the Centre with the Secretary, Department of Higher Education, Government of Manipur in August 2002 to initiate disciplinary proceedings against the Director. The matter was referred to the Ministry in August 2003 and in April 2004.