Goa power minister involved in over Rs 300-cr scam: Congress

Goa Congress today accused the state Power Minister Milind Naik of being involved in a "scam" of over Rs 300 crore in his department, a charge refuted by the minister.
"State Power Minister Milind Naik has been involved in irregularities related to the issuing of tenders of various works in his department. The total sum involved is approximately Rs 328.82 crore," Goa Congress spokesman Sunil Kawathankar said.
Accusing the minister of fraud, manipulation and rigging of the tender process, the Congress leader alleged, "The minister has thrown all the laws, rules and procedures to the wind to siphon and pocket money from public exchequer in the name of development."

The Congress leader said he would file a formal complaint with Lokayukta in the next two days regarding the "scam".
"We have also sent a letter to Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar seeking his intervention in the matter and order inquiry into the scam and drop the minister from the Cabinet," Kawathankar said.
When contacted, Naik said he was not involved in any scam. "Let an inquiry be conducted into the allegations. We have followed all the procedures while awarding tenders for various works," he said.