Guwahati: The Arunachal Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) has called for Chief Minister Pema Khandu to step down, accusing his government of failing to cooperate with a CBI inquiry ordered by the Supreme Court.
APCC working president Tanga Byaling made the demand on Monday alleging that the state administration had not provided adequate assistance to the Central Bureau of Investigation in its preliminary probe into public works contracts valued at about Rs 1,270 crore.
According to Byaling, the contracts under scrutiny were allegedly given to companies associated with relatives of Khandu.
He said the matter has reached the Supreme Court, which reportedly summoned the state Chief Secretary and Principal Secretary (Home) after receiving CBI reports about the alleged lack of cooperation from the state government.
The Congress also questioned the need for judicial intervention, recalling that Khandu had welcomed the CBI probe on April 6 and had publicly assured that his government would assist the agency.
The APCC said the developments had raised questions about the BJP-led government’s claim of having “Zero Tolerance Against Corruption”.
Byaling said Khandu should resign to allow the investigation to proceed independently and without any possible conflict of interest.
The party also raised questions over recent transfers and changes involving officials in departments whose records may be relevant to the CBI investigation.
The APCC called on the government to preserve all tender documents, work orders and electronic records that could be examined as part of the probe, warning against any alteration, delay or destruction of such material.
The party called for the government to share all relevant documents with the CBI, disclose how it has assisted the agency and safeguard officials and whistleblowers helping with the investigation.
The state government had not responded to the allegations at the time of reporting.