All-party meet on dal scam ends inconclusively

The all-party meet convened by the speaker of the state legislative assembly to resolve the deadlock in the house over the controversial dal scam ended inconclusively.

The Opposition MLAs alleged that the state government is not taking any concrete action in the scam and disrupted the proceedings of the house during the Question Hour. The Opposition members displayed samples of poor quality of dal collected from different districts and created a din on the floor of the house, forcing the Speaker to adjourn the house thrice.

Meanwhile, the state Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has urged the Opposition to cooperate in conducting business in the house.

"Criminal action will be taken against all those found to be guilty in the sub-standard dal matter. The Opposition needs to cooperate in the proceedings of the house”, he told reporters.

The State Human Rights Commission has directed the secretary (women & child development) to submit report on the dal scam within 10 days and replace the rotten pulses.The alleged irregularities in dal procurement for the flasghip Mid Day Meal Programme and Supplementary Nutrition Programme (SNP) had snowballed into a major controversy with the Opposition political parties mounting pressure on the Chief Minister on the issue.