Paddy scam: Police raid CONFED office

Early last week, the CONFED chairman, Haripada Biswas, stepped down as a sequel to the Enforcement Branch inquiry that has already unearthed large scale malpractices and discrepancy in foodgrain stocks with CONFED and district cooperatives affiliated to it.

On Tuesday, a 22-member Enforcement team raided the the CONFED office. The new chairman initially offered some resistance, saying it was a government body and the police could not raid it. Later, the officials gave up and handed over the papers demanded to the police. The initial scrutiny showed the Food and Supplies department had advanced Rs 43 crore to the CONFED for paddy procurement. How much of this money was actually spent on procurement and the actual stock position are being checked.

8220;The team will verify the stocks at the ground level with claims made on paper by the CONFED. Instances of discrepancy are already there,8221; said a senior Enforcement official.