Kharge targets BJP over alleged Rs 1,200-Crore rice diversion scam in MP

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge alleged Madhya Pradesh has become a hub of corruption under the BJP, citing reports of a ₹1,200-crore ethanol-linked rice diversion scam. He questioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi's silence and demanded accountability over the alleged irregularitiesMallikarjun Kharge, Madhya Pradesh, BJP, ethanol scam, rice diversion, PDS, Mohan Yadav, corruption, SIT, Narendra Modi, Congress, fortified rice, politics

New Delhi: Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge alleged on Saturday that Madhya Pradesh has become the “epicentre of corruption and loot” under the BJP, after reports of an alleged ethanol scam emerged from the state.

In a post on X, Kharge questioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s silence over the “scam” and alleged that the very concept of accountability in public life has been trampled upon under the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) regime.

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“Madhya Pradesh has become the epicentre of corruption and loot and a synonym for corruption under the BJP government, where one scam after another surfaces,” he said in his post in Hindi.

Kharge cited media reports alleging that rice meant for ethanol production is being diverted back into the Public Distribution System (PDS) in Madhya Pradesh. The reports also said the Madhya Pradesh government has formed a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe a suspected multi-crore-rupee fortified-rice-diversion racket, whereby subsidised grain supplied to approved ethanol plants is allegedly sold to private millers and recycled into government warehouses.

“Now, a Rs 1,200 crore rice scam in the name of ethanol has come to light. The very rice that was meant to be used for the nutrition of malnourished children, pregnant women and adolescent girls has been diverted in a game of profit,” the Congress chief said.

He claimed that 5 lakh MT of rice have become a part of this “corrupt game” under the protection of rice millers, the ethanol mafia and the BJP government.

“With the collusion of the BJP and the government machinery, the public’s rightful grain is being looted,” Kharge alleged. “Before this, a massive land scam came to light. In Ujjain, land expansions happened in precisely those areas where government infrastructure projects and the highway corridor were proposed. This has raised question marks even over the chief minister himself,” Kharge said, while raising the recent charges made against Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav of buying land in the name of his relatives.

“Everywhere, in every department, it is a game of loot and filling their own pockets — this is the story of the BJP’s loot,” the Congress chief alleged.

He claimed that this “loot”, which began with “Vyapam”, has not stopped even today, despite countless paper leaks and cases of corruption.

“The BJP has turned Madhya Pradesh into a model of corruption and as always, Modiji just sits there in stoic silence. “The Modi-Shah duo has trampled the very concept of accountability in public life under the arrogance of power,” Kharge alleged.