Hyderabad: BRS leader T Harish Rao alleged a rice export scam in the Civil Supplies department during the Telangana Assembly session, while the minister issued a strong rebuttal.
The issue surfaced on Monday as the fifth day of the budget session began. Harish Rao accused the government of appointing an advisor facing cases by central agencies such as CBI and ED.
He questioned the appointment of Prem Chand Garg as advisor for rice exports, alleging that the individual faced charges in bank fraud and gold smuggling cases. According to him, the advisor’s decisions caused heavy losses to the state exchequer.
Harish Rao stated that the government announced export of 10 lakh metric tonnes of rice to the Philippines. However, exports stopped at 22,750 tonnes, he said. He further alleged that about 7,500 tonnes remained stuck at Kakinada Port for nearly a year, leading to damage.
He claimed the exports halted due to disagreements over commissions. Accordingly, he demanded that a House committee be formed to probe the rice export scam and said the Opposition would present evidence.
Minister counters rice export scam allegations
Civil Supplies Minister Uttam Kumar Reddy rejected the allegations. Instead, he termed the claims baseless and politically motivated.
The minister alleged that Harish Rao raised the issue out of dissatisfaction, as the government did not appoint individuals recommended by him.
He clarified that Prem Chand Garg had no role in the Philippines rice export deal. He added that the agreement was between the Telangana government and the Philippines government.
Further, he said political instability in the Philippines led to restrictions on imports. However, Telangana rice received an exemption, he said. He also stated that only one ration rice shipment remained held up at Kakinada Port.