Barely a week after the Rajya Sabha election in Manipur, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has summoned former Manipur chief minister and Congress leader, Okram Ibobi Singh, and some officials for questioning in connection with the alleged embezzlement of development funds amounting ₹332 crores.
According to media reports, a CBI team has reached Imphal to question the former chief minister and three former chairmen of Manipur Development Society on Wednesday.
In November 2019, the CBI had taken over the case on the request of the BJP government of the state.
It is alleged that Singh conspired, with others, during his tenure as the chairman of the Manipur Development Society (MDS) from June 2009-July 2017.
The misappropriated government funds were worth approximately Rs 332 crore out of Rs 518 crore that was entrusted to them to execute development works, reports added.
The development comes less than a week after Congress candidate T Mangibabu faced defeat in the recent Rajya Sabha election in the hand of BJP’s Leisemba Sanajaoba.
The result had come as a huge setback for Congress party and former Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh, who on June 17 approached Manipur governor Najma Heptulla seeking a special session to floor a no-confidence motion after three BJP MLAs, four National People’s Party MLAs and two others defected from the ruling party of the state.
The CBI team will question former chief minister O. Ibobi Singh, who was one of the four chairmen of Manipur Development Society; the three others are D S Poonia, PC Lawmuknga, O Nabakishore Singh – all retired IAS officers.
The CBI will soon question Y Ningthem Singh, the former project director of the society and S Ranjit Singh, its administrative officer who has also been named in the FIR.
