By IANSÂ
Lucknow : Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati Wednesday ordered a fresh probe into the alleged involvement of former food minister Raghuraj Pratap Singh alias Raja Bhaiya in what was considered a major corruption scandal in the state's public distribution system.
Raja Bhaiya, a minister in the erstwhile Mulayam Singh Yadav government, is suspected to be involved in gross irregularities that were exposed during the course of another probe ordered by the previous Samajwadi Party administration.
Mayawati has decided to entrust the probe to the Special Investigation Team (SIT), recently formed by her to investigate major corruption and criminal cases in Uttar Pradesh.
According to the chief minister, both the inquiries were of "wishy-washy" nature as a large chunk of food material meant for public distribution under various welfare schemes were diverted into the black market both inside and outside the state.
While the Mulayam Singh government had preferred to keep the suspected irregularities under wraps, a petition filed before the Allahabad High Court compelled the former chief minister to entrust the inquiry to the state anti-corruption and economic offences wings.
Apparently, that was done to circumvent the court's suggestion to entrust the case to Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
It was followed by action against a number of government officials belonging to different departments. However, the centrepiece of the racket – the food and civil supplies department – was given a clean chit along with its minister who was close to Mulayam Singh Yadav.