THE BIHAR FLOOD SCAM, PART - IX
Indian Express, May 2, 2005
No FIR against scamsters but Bihar books fathers of two shot in relief riots
Case against village which came out to protest official connivance in sale of relief supply material
VARGHESE K GEORGE

PATNA, MAY 1: Not a single FIR has been filed against any official or contractor involved in the Bihar flood scam though it's been a week since The Indian Express first reported that at least Rs 17.45 crore, meant for flood relief last year, was siphoned off from the Patna District Magistrate's account.

But in Darbhanga, where police used bullets to quell the fight for flood relief last year, the state has moved quickly: 61 persons have been charged with rioting, including two men who have had no time to grieve for sons felled by police bullets.

Digambar Kanti's son Babloo, 16, and Upinder Kanti's son Shyam Sunder, 22, were killed when police fired on people clamouring for relief on August 16, 2004. Seven others were injured in the firing.

The Kantis have now landed in Patna to join a protest against inadequate relief work. The protests are still on because the floods changed lives forever, money meant for relief was siphoned off and misery multiplied manifold in homes across affected districts.

''Whatever supplies reached Ujam, our village, was sold in the local market by the Mukhiya with active connivance of officials. When officials refused to listen to our complaints, the entire village collected and blocked road and rail on August 16,'' recalls Digambar.

Around 5 pm that day, says Digambar, SHOs from three police stations and officials landed there. ''No questions were asked, the police began firing. When people ran, my son was left behind. He was caught by the police who shot him behind his ear,'' weeps the man as he shows you a photograph of his son's body.

Upinder says his son Shyam Sunder was not even part of the protest. ''He had gone to a PCO to make a call to Mumbai. He wanted to inform his employers that he was stuck here and would rejoin work a little late. But the police shot him dead.''

Police also opened fire in Patepur in Vaishali district, killing a 12-year-old. Riots over relief also took place in Hasa in Samastipur and Bajitpur in Darbhanga.
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THE BIHAR FLOOD SCAM, PART-X
Indian Express, May 3, 2005
Contractor diverted flood relief as pre-poll sop for voters in his home and constituency
Bihar Sadhu Yadav attended the launch of organisation Jha floated for 'welfare' months before he got an Assembly ticket
SUBRATA NAGCHOUDHURY
Posted online: Tuesday, May 03, 2005 at 0205 hours IST

 SANGHI (MADHUBANI), MAY 2: Madhubani was among the worst-affected districts in the Bihar floods last year. But there are two blocks in Madhubani, Phulparas and Ghoghardiha, where you will not find people complaining about inadequate flood relief work.

Because Santosh Kumar Jha—a detailed investigation by The Indian Express into the Bihar flood scam established he was the recipient of the Rs 17.45 crore relief assistance paid by Patna DM Gautam Goswami from the DM's account—ensured that 36 panchayats on his home turf remained happy.

Jha, who calls RJD leader Sadhu Yadav his ''brother'' and sings Goswami's praises, flooded the two blocks with relief material. His home village Sanghi was not even flood-hit but supplies kept flowing in. The reason wasn't far to find.

Months later, he contested the Bihar elections on Ram Vilas Paswan's LJP ticket from Madhepur in Madhubani. He turned to the LJP after he was denied a ticket by the RJD under whose rule he made his pile. Though he didn't win the seat, he still managed 6,000 plus votes. After the expose, Paswan claimed he had no idea how Jha got the ticket!

Officials in Madhubani, not willing to be named, confirm that government relief supplies meant for distribution were diverted to Jha's area to ''build up a popular image'' in the run-up to the polls.

Jha's ''flood relief operations'', being conducted under the banner of the Public Welfare Foundation, distributed the same material which the government had set aside for the flood-hit: chura, gur, sattu and polythene sheets. Those considered his loyalists even had access to kerosene oil.

In Sanghi, there's no confusion on who's behind the Public Welfare Foundation. Says Jha's neighbour Bimal Chandra Jha: ''Till date it has been a one-man show. Santosh Jha manages the affairs. There are no office bearers, not to our knowledge at least.''

Seven confiscated cars, including a brand new Tata Sumo Victa, lie in a government shed near Lakhnour police station. They are in the name of the Public Welfare Foundation.

After the scam was exposed by The Indian Express, RJD's Sadhu Yadav claimed he had no links with Jha. But Sadhu Yadav was among the VIPs present when the Public Welfare Foundation's relief operations in Phulparas and Ghoghardiha was launched on September 25, 2004.

The rally near Durgasthan in Sanghi was so huge that the idea of on-the-spot relief distribution had to be abandoned. ''It would have led to a stampede,'' recalls a resident.

The crowd was told that relief would reach every home in tractors. Jha kept his word. For almost four months, the tractors did bring in relief. The ''relief operation'' was finally called off when volunteers, unable to take the strain of travelling to the interiors daily, began to fall sick.

Residents say that posters with photographs of Sadhu Yadav and other leaders were plastered in every corner of Sanghi. Once the flood scam broke, these posters disappeared overnight.

''He (Jha) was rising fast. He was Neta-type, distributing free supplies. Each family got something or the other though we didn't have the floods here,'' says Musharam Mukhia in Sanghi. ''Santosh has not taken anything from us. But he has given us lots,'' adds Benoy Kumar Jha. Others nod in agreement.

Jha's home in Sanghi is a two-storeyed building, surrounded by thatched huts. Though not as luxurious as his Patna mansion, it has an air-conditioner. The second floor, still incomplete, was built after the floods.