Cong seeks CBI probe into food-grains scam
Tuesday, 26/04/2016
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NEW DELHI: The Congress wants the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to look into Punjab’s alleged `20,000-crore food-grains scam. Its members on Monday raised the demand in the Lok Sabha.
Raising the issue during Zero Hour, Ludhiana MP Ravneet Singh Bittu said since the affected banks had restricted the cash credit limit in the wake of the scam, the suicide rate among Punjab farmers had climbed, because now they were unable to sell their produce.
Aam Aadmi Party’s Sangrur MP Bhagwant Mann supported him in asking food minister Ram Vilas Paswan to make a statement on the scam, to tell the nation who was responsible for it. Accusing the Punjab government of “embezzling” `12,000crore food-grain stock by failing to lift it but securing cash credit limit from the Centre every procurement season, the opposition Congress had earlier demanded the resignation of chief minister Parkash Singh Badal and an inquiry monitored by the Punjab and Haryana high court.
Close to 30 banks, led by the State Bank of India (SBI), had earlier decided not to sanction any advance to the Punjab government
