Shillong, Oct 6: Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma has affirmed his government’s stand against extortion, saying any illegal collection of money from trucks will not be tolerated.
He, however, said action against alleged illegal collection will be based on concrete evidence and not on mere allegations.
“We want to ensure that none of these activities take place and action should be taken. We are very firm and very clear on that,” he told reporters on Tuesday while responding to alleged illegal collection from truckers flagged by the Khasi Students’ Union (KSU).
Stating that the government cannot act solely on allegations, he said, “In a situation like this, obviously, we need to work on specific proof and we cannot simply go on allegation.”
He said the government has been taking action on any information about irregularities in any sector.
“Let me assure everybody, whenever we find such a situation, wherever such a thing is happening, any kind of information has come to us, we have taken action. In future also, if the need arises, we will take action,” he said.
However, he said, due process has to be followed in taking such action.
“We have to ensure that all the facts and figures are looked into. All the evidence has to be there… One simply cannot jump into conclusion and say that this is happening,” he said.
“We are very clear on our stand that this kind of activities will not be allowed. If we find such activities taking place, we will take action,” he added.
