When asked on the irregularities in Dibrugarh Police, mostly relating to requisitioning of vehicles and consequential payments, Agarwalla admitted that he used a Scorpio that was provided to him by Oil India Authority (OIL). "There was nothing wrong in it because the oil major uses to sponsor one vehicle for the district police chief and other for the head of district administration on hire and payment basis," he said.
Agarwalla said on his handing over charge on transfer, the use of the Scorpio was discontinued from February 23, 2009. He stated that necessary payments of the said vehicle were regularly made by OIL authority through account payee cheque made out in the name of the owner who is significantly a resident of the Beltola area of Guwahati.
Previously a Bolero was provided to the Dibrugarh SP. However, at the time of joining, Agarwalla expressed his preference for Scorpio instead of Bolero. Because of procedural and time constraint, OIL authorities offered Agarwalla to choose his own vehicle, and the same be regularized after receipt of all papers. Thus, the Scorpio vehicle from Beltola!
At the time of joining of the successor SP, a Tata Safari was already in use of Dibrugarh Police Department. At that time there was a presumption that the said vehicle was provided by Oil authorities. However, former SP Agarwalla has categorically stated that it was a case of police requisition, and as in the case in all such cases of police requisition the payment of requisition charges are generally delayed because of procedural matters. Therefore, the vehicle owner, one P Konwar of Chabua, expects his payment for the use of his vehicle for the last two years in due course.
Meanwhile, it is learnt that the D G office has cleared three months bills in favour of P Konwar for letting his Tata Safari to the police.
The fact of the matter of police requisition came to light only when the said Tata Safari vehicle was put to the use of present SP Abhijit Bora, and there were complaints of nonpayment for the two years.
OIL authorities have now called for the papers of the vehicles and given an assurance to regularize the same. They will, however, make the payment only from the date of regularization.
Agarwalla said that there were no irregularities in hiring of BCPL vehicles and payments. He said all payments were deposited to government treasury maintaining all procedural norms.
But a question remains a mystery, how a party from a Beltola could contract to provide a vehicle when the present practice of OIL authorities is to hire a vehicle only from the OIL operation area! SOURCE: THE SENTINEL
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