The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has submitted a prosecution complaint before the Special PMLA Court in Dimapur concerning the alleged misappropriation of public funds and substandard construction related to the new Gauhati High Court’s Kohima bench complex. This complaint includes charges against individuals such as Avituo Sekhose, the firm M/s Hexad Syndicate, and others, for alleged misappropriation of government funds during the execution of this construction project. The investigation was initiated following an FIR registered by the Central Bureau of Investigation’s (CBI) Imphal Anti-Corruption Branch on June 17, 2019, stemming from directions issued by the Gauhati High Court in a public interest litigation (PIL) concerning the misuse of public money and the poor quality of the construction work.
The FIR points to violations of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and several provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, alleging that Nagaland Public Works Department (PWD) officials colluded with government contractors to misappropriate taxpayer funds allocated for the high court complex’s construction. Evidence unearthed during the investigation revealed that PWD officials had fraudulently inflated the expenses for the construction of retaining walls, resulting in an excessive payment of approximately Rs 80.25 lakh to contractor Avituo Sekhose. Additional inflated costs were also associated with the construction of the complex’s road and footpath, which led to an excess payment of around Rs 29.68 lakh to M/s Hexad Syndicate and its partners, Thepfusatuo Rio, Mhalelie Rio, and Vibeilietuo Kets.
The identified proceeds of crime amount to nearly Rs 1.09 crore. As part of the investigation’s findings, the ED has issued a provisional attachment order for Rs 96.67 lakh. The investigation further indicates the complicity of various Nagaland PWD officials, leading to significant financial losses for the public exchequer.
