Fertiliser scam: FIR against Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot's brother Agrasain, 14 others

New Delhi, June 17

The CBI today said it had registered an FIR naming 15 persons, including Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot’s brother Agrasain Gehlot, and conducted searches at 15 locations in Rajasthan, Gujarat and West Bengal for allegedly causing loss of Rs 52.8 crore to the government exchequer on account of alleged illegal export-import of fertiliser.

Cong cries political vendetta

If I took part in Rahul’s movement then why take revenge from my brother? The ED had raided my brother’s place in 2020 too when there was crisis in our govt. — Ashok Gehlot, Rajasthan CM

Harassment of Opposition leaders who stand up and speak truth to power has become the hallmark of the BJP govt. Our fight will go on. — Rahul Gandhi, Congress leader

The Congress on its part, however, cried vendetta as party leaders Rahul Gandhi, Jairam Ramesh and KC Venugopal took to the Twitter to hit at the government.

The CBI in an official release said the agency had named 15 persons as accused in the FIR in the case, including Gehlot and entities.

A team of CBI sleuths also reached Agrasain’s residence in Mandore, Jodhpur, to conduct searches, officials said, adding that the agency has also named Deen Dayal Vohra, Amrit Lal Bandi, Brijesh Jairam Nath, Nitin Kumar Shah, Sunil Sharma and Praveen Saraf among others as accused in the FIR.

Rahul said, “I stand in solidarity with @ashokgehlot51 ji and his family against politics of vendetta.”

Reacting to the development, Ashok Gehlot said he had recently sought an appointment with the Director of the CBI and ED and the Chairman of the Income Tax Department. “Time was sought on June 13 and on June 15 the case was registered and raids conducted on June 17. What is this approach, it is beyond comprehension,” he said.

AICC communication department chief Jairam Ramesh said, “This is vendetta politics beyond all bounds.@ashokgehlot51 was at the forefront of the protests in Delhi over the past three days, and this is Modi govt’s brazen response!”

The case relates to alleged corruption in the import of muriate of potash (MOP), also known as potassium chloride, which was to be distributed to farmers at around 80 per cent subsidy offered by the government, the CBI said.

The MOP imported for distribution among farmers was allegedly repackaged as industrial salt fluorspar and exported to South East Asian countries, Saudi Arabia and other markets, it alleged, adding that the subsidy offered by the government was claimed by accused through sham transactions.