Delhi ACB to probe sugar scam, says its chief

Delhi Anti-Corruption Branch chief M.K. Meena on Wednesday said it would probe the procurement of sugar allegedly at inflated rates by the Delhi government.

A Right to Information activist, Vivek Garg, had filed a complaint with the ACB against the Aam Aadmi Party government on the matter and demanded an inquiry.

After receiving the complaint, Meena told reporters that the ACB would probe the entire matter.

After facing charges of corruption in the procurement of onions, the Arvind Kejriwal government has been accused of a scam in the sugar purchase.

In his complaint, Garg alleged that the Delhi government procured sugar at higher rate to benefit a few companies even as sugar was available at much lower prices in the open market at that time.

Garg claimed the state government committed irregularities in sugar purchase from February 2015 onwards.

"The Delhi government procured over one lakh quintals of sugar since February 2015 from two companies - Sainik Food Pvt. Ltd. and Frozen Food India Pvt. Ltd. - at Rs.3,390 and Rs.3,087 per quintal respectively," Garg said, adding that over Rs.32 crore were paid to both companies for the purchases.

He alleged that the AAP government procured sugar from these two companies to give them undue benefit while sugar was available at Rs.20 to Rs.22 per kg in the wholesale market at that time.

He said that instead of purchasing sugar from National Factory of Sugar Federation Ltd. and cooperative societies at cheaper rates, the Delhi government procured it from private companies to benefit them.

In his complaint, Garg said as per rules on financial powers, orders of such big amounts can only be passed by the Expenditure Finance Committee and the cabinet.

"All the decisions were taken by the cabinet and the council of ministers to purchase sugar. So, the chief minister and other ministers played an important role in the whole game of corruption," he wrote in his complaint letter.