Z. Lohe
The Coordination Committee on Fuel Adulteration (CCoFA) imposed indefinite bandh on the movement of Govt. vehicles and oil tankers on highways with effect from 17th October 2016 onwards. In reaction to the agitation of CCoFA, the State Govt. had declared the bandh ‘illegal’ as the order of the Govt. was published in all local papers in its front pages.
As one sifts through the statement on the order of the Govt., it is found a plain order bereft of law whereby the following questions arise:
1. The serious question is how the agitation of CCoFA was declared illegal when neither any Art in the Constitution of India, nor any clause in IPC or CrPC was quoted by DAN Govt. under which the public agitation was viewed as illegal.
2. Under what rule and which law of the country or of the State, Govt. justifies the ongoing peaceful agitation of the public illegal?
3. The news about the damaging of vehicles and to the extent of volunteers of CCoFA being manhandled in Dimapur by Nagaland Police was published in local media today, the 18th October 2016. Under what rule and with what legal power the Police force was used against the peaceful volunteers?
4. If the agitation is really illegal under law, how could the Govt. of Nagaland allow the agitation to pass off the day with success except the one reported incident?
5. If the agitation is illegal, how none of the agitators was arrested?
The questions to bureaucrats are:
1. The ears and eyes of the Govt. are the bureaucrats comprising supposedly of the better brains as IAS, IPS, NCS, etc. Do the present day bureaucrats function under the laid down rules and the Rules of Executive Business?
2. Do this posse of officers who called themselves to be intellectuals, intelligent, experienced and well versed with the law of the land know that such order of the Govt. declaring the public movement as illegal has to be done so only under the relevant rules?
3. Has the Home Commissioner, Nagaland, in his zeal of freelance governance intentionally avoided to quote relevant laws or forgot all those laws as usual?
4. Has it become a habit of today’s bureaucrat in running the affairs of the public, rules are not used as considered irrelevant and rather took it to be roadblocks to development of corruption?
5. If not by the rules, where does power come from according to bureaucrats?
The other questions poised to Govt.:
1. Does the Govt. of Nagaland consider Fuel Adulteration as legal business whereby the agitation against the scam by public was declared illegal?
2. Does the Govt. of Nagaland promote Fuel Adulteration as industry in lieu of the collapsed Sugar Mill and the comatose Tuli Paper Mill?
3. Is the DAN Govt. contemplating to promote Fuel Adulteration in bigger scale to enhance internal revenue mobilisation so as to meet the requirement of salary component by which non-release of salaries of the employees will end?
4. Does DAN Govt. consider that Fuel Adulteration is the better option for utilisation of excess allocation of Kerosene oil to Nagaland?
5. Does DAN Govt. consider Fuel Adulteration as the alternative to oil exploration by MOGPL?
6. Did DAN Govt come to know the existence of Fuel Adulteration in Dimapur only when busted and exposed by ACAUT?
7. Has DAN Govt. legislated un-numbered and un-coded law under which the administration will accommodate and tolerate all kind of illegal activities in Nagaland?
8. Is there any firm decision of DAN Govt. to shift the responsibility of detection of illegal activities in Nagaland to NGOs under the flagship of e-Governance?
Now, fuel adulteration must have been done in the full knowledge of Civil Supplies Department manned by Chief Minister himself. The illicit business in question has wide ramifications as it started and existed with collusion. It is common knowledge that when properly probed, many will be implicated including those who profess to be pious and able to throw the first stone. The so called SIT can therefore be easily gagged as we cannot expect it to be fearless and honest. What then is left for CCoFA than proper probe into the scam by a reliable authority with teeth to bite.
The declaration of the ongoing agitation of CCoFA as illegal by DAN Govt. lacks legality. The plain order itself is so ordinary and without authority and it failed to command respect. The so called order has no legal binding on the citizens of the State since it is outside the purview of existing rules and is therefore challengeable the way, it suits the authority who took such decision and accordingly issued such order lawlessly as they govern without punctuations.
