Sirsa warns of legal action after AAP alleges Rs 22,000 crore rice scam plan
Delhi Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa on Sunday threatened legal action against Delhi AAP president Saurabh Bharadwaj, who alleged irregularities in the BJP-led Government’s proposed procurement and distribution of subsidised rice and claimed that a Rs 22,000 crore scam was being planned over the next three years.
AAP MLA Sanjeev Jha also raised questions over the manner in which the subsidised rice was procured and subsequently sold.
Food and Supplies Minister Sirsa gave the AAP leaders 24 hours to withdraw their allegations and issue a public apology, failing which he said he would initiate appropriate legal proceedings against them.
Earlier, Bharadwaj, during a press conference, said the Rekha Gupta Government and an Assam-based corporation had made a formal request to the Food Corporation of India (FCI) for subsidised rice to be distributed among the poor and needy in the national Capital.
He claimed that around 31,000 metric tonnes of rice per week were sought under the arrangement, alleging that the rice did not reach the intended beneficiaries and was subsequently sold to a private company in Haryana.
“The rice, obtained at around Rs 23.20 per kg, was allegedly being sold in the open market for Rs 46 per kg, resulting in a commission of Rs 23 per kg, amounting to around Rs 143 crore scam every week,” Bharadwaj alleged.
He further claimed that the arrangement was planned for three years and involved transactions worth around Rs 22,000 crore.
Responding to accusations, Sirsa on X slammed Jha and Bharadwaj for making “baseless, false, fabricated and malicious allegations” against him, saying they were intended to defame and malign him. He also said such a campaign appeared to be the “modus operandi” of the two AAP leaders.
BJP Spokesperson Praveen Shankar Kapoor said that all Aam Aadmi Party leaders, from Arvind Kejriwal to Saurabh Bharadwaj, have become politically frustrated and are making irresponsible statements merely to remain in the news.
The Delhi BJP spokesperson said that the development works being undertaken in Delhi, along with schemes being implemented for women and girls, have severely weakened the AAP’s political standing in Delhi.
Ever since surveys predicting AAP’s defeat in the upcoming Punjab elections have started emerging, Arvind Kejriwal’s entire team has descended to the lowest level of politics - making baseless allegations and then running away. Their political language has completely lost all decorum.
The Delhi BJP spokesperson said that Delhi Government Minister Sardar Manjinder Singh Sirsa, in an X post today, stated that once again, AAP Delhi Convenor Saurabh Bharadwaj and MLA Sanjeev Jha attempted to level false and baseless allegations against the Delhi Government through a press conference. However, the people of Delhi no longer have any faith in them.
