'Dhaincha seed purchase was an attempted scam'

State Agriculture Minister Harak Singh Rawat said the Dhaincha seed purchase scam was an ‘attempted scam’ since the supplier company could not withdraw the full amount. The company withdrew `1.42 crore out of `5.25 crore as the incumbent Government had stopped the payment. It was mainly an attempted scam and now the State Government would lodge an FIR against accused after seeking legal advice from the law department, said Rawat.

The Minister said the Government had awarded tender to the Nidhi Seed company in the year 2011. As per the contract the company was supposed to supply 13184.50 quintals of Dhaincha seed at the cost of `5.2593 crore. 

As per the official data the company supplied a mere 318 quintal seeds and department had released `1.42 crore to the company. “When the news broke about a possible scam in the seed procurement then we asked the company to submit details bill about how it supplied that much seed to the State. During communication the company submitted a bill along with licence plate number  of trucks. During verification no such vehicle number was found to exist in the country. In nutshell you can say that the numbers are just like what we are coming across in recent disaster relief and rescue scam,” he said. 

He further said, “The company had tried to embezzle the Government money by submitting wrong bills but we managed to save the State from financial embezzlement because we did not clear their payment.  Seeing inimical condition the company challenged the Government order in the High Court. The Government has studied the Tripathi Commission report, which has ascertained scam in the Dhaincha seed procurement.” In a recently held Cabinet meeting, the State Cabinet had decided that the matter would be referred to legal department and once the department’s opinion is received, the State would lodge FIR against the guilty person.

The Minister says that officials had issued receiving certificate to the supplier company but could not justify how cabinet minister is involved in wrong submission of bills. As is known, a minister’s involvement may be possible in allotment of tender but they are not responsible to issuing receiving certificate. Replying to the media query Rawat said that it is true that financial embezzlement did not happen but scam happened because wrong bills were submitted to get payment according to tender.