Groundnut scam: Gujarat Congress continues to attack government

The Congress seems to be in no mood to relent as far as the groundnut scam is concerned, and continues to build pressure on the state government.

On Monday, the Opposition party held protests across the state to press for a judicial inquiry into the groundnut procurement scam, which it alleges is worth Rs 4,000 crore.

State Congress president Amit Chavda, who joined the protest in Kheda, said that there was clear evidence of direct involvement of BJP leaders in the groundnut scam, and accused the state government of shielding the wrongdoers. Leader of opposition Paresh Dhanani took part in the protests in Bhavnagar. He demanded that strict action be taken against the people responsible for the massive scam, and pressed for a probe by a sitting judge of Gujarat High Court.

In a tweet, Dhanani expressed regret at his comments targeting agriculture minister RC Faldu, but questioned if it was the agriculture minister or the chief minister or the whole government that was shielding the accused. He alleged that former minister Chiman Shapariya was also involved in the scam. However, Shapariya challenged Dhanani to prove his charges, and said he would quit politics if he could do so, and asked Dhanani to resign if he was unable to do so. On Tuesday, the party will protest against the scam outside the Ahmedabad collector office.