The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has filed a charge sheet against Cotton Corporation of India (CCI) officials for allegedly misappropriating Rs 21 crore through benami transactions in 2004-05 . The CBI booked the cases after conducting the searches three years ago. The CBI filed the charge sheet in the special court in Visakhapatnam.
Influential cotton buyer Rayapati Subbarao was among the 47 accused who were facing the charges in the case. While there are many CCI officials in the accused list, several middlemen have also been booked for helping the officials make these illegal transactions. Sources said the CCI officials picked up stocks from the middlemen and pocketed Rs 21 crore by preparing records in the name of farmers.
The CCI purchases a huge quantum of cotton from the farmers under its market intervention scheme by extending the minimum support price. The scheme is of great help to the farmers particularly when the market is on a downward mode and the private traders refuse to pick up the stocks. There were allegations that the CCI officials , especially buyers (buyer is a regular employee of CCI, who decides upon which stock to be purchased at what price) took such situations to their advantage and connived with the middlemen to make a killing.
With the buyer having the discretion either to accept or reject the stock, the middlemen rules the market by threatening the farmers that their stocks would be rejected if they directly take them to the purchase points. The farmers then sold their stocks to the middlemen at relatively lower prices being offered by the government leaving huge profit to the officials and brokers.
(SOURCE - TOI)
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