Four millers among 7 booked for ₹11-crore rice scam in Kaithal
FRAUD The accused duped Haryana State Cooperative Supply and Marketing Federation Limited (Hafed) by not returning the rice for the paddy they procured for it in 2017 and 2018
KARNAL: Four rice millers, two commission agents and an exporter in Kaithal have duped the Haryana State Cooperative Supply and Marketing Federation Limited (Hafed) of Rs 11.18 crore by not returning the rice for the paddy they procured for it in 2017 and 2018.
The matter came to light when Hafed Kaithal district manager Ved Prakash Malik, on directions of the Hafed managing director, Kaithal, filed a police complaint in this regard.
The accused have been identified as Sushil Kumar, owner of Ramji Rice Land Chandana of Kaithal; Tarsem Chand and Raj Pal, owners of Kisan Rice Land Pvt Ltd, Kaithal; and Jai Bhagwan Bansal, owner of Vardaan Exports, Kaithal; Raj Kumar and Ashok Kumar, commission agents at Kaithal grain market; and Gurbachan Singh, an exporter and owner of Haryana Agro Foods, Kaithal.
Kaithal superintendent of police (SP) Waseem Akram said the police have registered two FIRS under Sections 120 B (criminal conspiracy), 406 (criminal breach of trust) and 420 (cheating). “Investigations are going on,” he said. Malik alleged that the accused caused huge financial loss to Hafed by committing fraud, forgery misappropriation, cheating, breach of trust and violation of Clause 10 of the Haryana Rice Procurement (Levy) Order, 1985, by conspiring and violating the custom milled rice policy.
They also did not give any response to the repeated notices issued to them by local officials.
Talking to Hindustan Times, the complainant said, “We have lodged two complaints against the accused for not returning the rice for 39,735 quintal paddy worth Rs 6.18 crore and 22,702 quintal paddy of Rs 5 crore they procured in 2018 and 2017, respectively.”
He said the FIR has been registered and they will have to pay for the loss they have caused to the government. On why the government allowed them to procure paddy in 2018, as they did not return the rice for the paddy procured by them in 2017, Malik said, “The procurement was done by different rice mills and they become owner and guarantor of each other.”
Hafed chairman Harvinder Kalyan said, “We have set guidelines for the recovery from such traders and they will have to return the rice at any cost. Otherwise the property of rice millers and their guarantors will be attached.”
He said that in future the government is going to make the entire process more transparent so that timely action could be taken against the defaulters.
We have guidelines for recovery. They will have to return the rice at any cost. Otherwise, property of rice millers and their guarantors will be attached.
HARVINDER KALYAN ,
Hafed chairman