Look into custom milling scam of Chhattisgarh

Raipur (Team Newsbuddy): In the custom milling scam, the Central Enforcement Directorate (ED) has arrested former Special Secretary of Food Department and Markfed MD Manoj Soni. ED presented Soni in the court two days ago and sought 10 days remand, but the court has approved remand of only 5 days. Now Soni will be presented in the court on May 4.

What is the custom milling scam

FIR has been registered on the report of ED in the custom milling scam as well. According to the report, the custom milling rice is deposited in the Civil Supplies Corporation and FCI by various rice millers. In this process, corruption was done on a large scale and illegal amount was recovered on the basis of per quintal and by misusing their position, various government officials connived with the rice millers and obtained undue benefits and caused financial loss to the government.

Preetika Pooja was instructed by Roshan Chandrakar through Manoj Soni, Managing Director, Markfed, to pay the bills of only those rice millers whose recovery amount had been received by Roshan Chandrakar. The information about which rice millers are to be paid was received from the Rice Millers Association of the concerned district through Manoj Soni. During the search operation conducted by the Income Tax Department, cash amounting to Rs. 1.06 crore has been recovered for which there is no account. Along with this, a lot of objectionable documents and digital devices have been recovered. Illegal recovery of about Rs. 140 crore has been found to have been made from the rice millers. The rice millers have been defrauding the Civil Supplies Corporation and FCI. The then Managing Director of Markfed Manoj Soni and the then District Marketing Officer Preetika Pooja Kerketta Korba, by misusing their positions as public servants, have indulged in large scale corruption in the deposit of custom milled rice and have collected illegal money per quintal. This has been done by the then Managing Director of Markfed Manoj Soni and the then District Marketing Officer Preetika Pooja Kerketta Korba, by entering into a criminal conspiracy with President of Chhattisgarh State Rice Millers Association Kailash Rungta, Vice President Parsmal Chopra and rank holder Roshan Chandrakar, which prima facie amounts to the commission of offences under Sections 120B, 409 of the Indian Penal Code and Sections 13 (1) (a) read with Sections 13 (2) and 11 of the IPC.