SAD demands cancellation of licences of 2 seed firms in intra-state seed scam

Chandigarh (Punjab) [India], June 1 : The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) on Sunday demanded the immediate cancellation of the licences of two seed companies -- Brar Seeds and Karnal Agri Seeds -- accused of engineering seed scam affecting the livelihood of farmers of Punjab and neighbouring states.
"After several complaints and protests by farmers in Jalandhar and other places, the State Agriculture Department had started taking action against few seed stores for selling spurious seeds of PR-128 and PR-129 paddy variety to farmers," said senior party leaders Balwinder Singh Bhundur and Sikander Singh Maluka.
However, no "concrete action" has been taken against Brar Seeds, Ludhiana, and Karnal Agri Seeds, Dera Baba Nanak despite an FIR registered by the Agriculture Department, for their alleged involvement in the multi-crore seed scam that came to light on May 11, said the leaders in a statement.
"It is shameful that despite the fact that Cabinet minister Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa's name had cropped up in the scam and his proximity to Karnal Seed's proprietor Lucky Dhillon had been highlighted, the government is yet to order an independent inquiry into the case," said the SAD leaders.
They urged the Chief Minister to intervene in the matter and forward the case to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for an inquiry or entrust its probe to a sitting judge of the high court.
Union Food Processing Industries Minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal had also urged Union Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister Narendra Singh on Friday to depute a central team to conduct an impartial probe into the intra-State seed scam.
In another development in the matter on Sunday, the Punjab police busted an alleged paddy seed scam with the arrest of Brar Seeds' owner. He was found selling spurious seeds to farmers at exorbitant rates, under the guise of some newly developed varieties of seeds, the police said.