Demanding the resignation of Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh over the alleged `36,000 crore rice scam in the State, the Congress on Saturday claimed it to be the “biggest PDS corruption scam” in the country.
“In order to ensure a fair investigation, Raman Singh must be sacked immediately,” said Congress spokesman Ajay Maken while addressing a joint Press conference along with Chhattisgarh PCC chief Bhupesh Baghel and state ClP leader TS Singhdeo.
Maken claimed that the magnitude of the scam could be judged from the fact that during the last 11 years of BJP rule in the state, the amount spent from the public exchequer on procurement of paddy as well as various other items came up to be about “`1.5 lakh crore”.
“The Chief Minister created a well-oiled corruption machine in connivance with rice mill owners, PDS shop owners and public officials to earn thousands of crores as kickbacks and commission,” he alleged.
The Congress leader also claimed that the names of the Chief Minister, his wife and sister-in-law were in a diary recovered from one of the accused by the Anti-Corruption Bureau(ACB) during the raids.