Follow us on Google News
Mohali: A special CBI court in Mohali has convicted and sentenced 30 accused persons in the 2004-05 Punjab rice procurement scam, handing out rigorous imprisonment ranging from one to three years along with fines. The order, pronounced on November 13, 2026, convicts 14 former officials of the Food Corporation of India (FCI) and 16 private rice millers across three separate corruption cases.
All 30 individuals were held guilty of criminal conspiracy and cheating under the Indian Penal Code (IPC). In addition, the 14 FCI officials were convicted under the provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988. The court imposed fines ranging from Rs 10,000 to Rs 25,000 on the convicts depending on their specific roles in the procurement irregularities.
Substandard Rice Accepted as Grade-A
The cases stem from a criminal conspiracy executed during the 2004-05 Kharif procurement season in Sangrur district of Punjab. According to the prosecution, FCI officials colluded with private rice mill owners to accept substandard rice consignments as Grade-A stocks at government procurement centres in Malerkotla, Sunam, and Tapa.
Because the inferior stocks were officially recorded as superior Grade-A rice, the private millers received wrongful payments at higher rates, causing substantial financial loss to the Food Corporation of India. The irregularities first surfaced during joint surprise checks conducted by the Central Bureau of Investigation in September 2005. Subsequent laboratory testing of collected rice samples confirmed that the consignments failed to meet prescribed quality specifications. Following the verification, the CBI registered a formal case on January 7, 2006, and filed three separate chargesheets on November 28, 2008, upon completing its investigation.
Convictions in Malerkotla and Sunam Cases
In the Malerkotla centre case (CC No. 59/2017), the court convicted 10 accused, comprising five FCI officials and five private rice millers. Former FCI technical assistants Varinder Rajput, Girdhari Lal, and K.P. Singh, along with former assistant managers (quality control) Raunaq Ali and R.N. Sharma, were each sentenced to two years of rigorous imprisonment and fined Rs 15,000. Among the private millers, Harish Kumar and Rajnish Kumar, partners of M/s Shiv Shakti Rice Agro Products, and Rakesh Goyal, partner of M/s R.K. Agro Tech, received three years of rigorous imprisonment and a fine of Rs 25,000 each. Ramesh Singla of M/s Shiv Shakti Rice Agro Products and Narinder Kumar, partner of M/s Satkartar Rice and Agro Mills, were sentenced to two years of rigorous imprisonment with a fine of Rs 20,000 each.
In the Sunam centre case (CC No. 60/2017), six individuals were convicted, including three FCI officials and three private millers. Former FCI assistant manager (quality control) R.C. Verma and technical assistants Som Pal Singh and K.L. Gulati were each handed two years of rigorous imprisonment and a Rs 15,000 fine. Kewal Krishan, partner of M/s Mahavir Rice Mills, was sentenced to one year of rigorous imprisonment and fined Rs 10,000. Hari Ram and Jiwan Lal, partners of M/s K.C. Rice Mills, received two years of rigorous imprisonment and a fine of Rs 20,000 each.
Fourteen Sentenced in Tapa Centre Case
The highest number of convictions occurred in the Tapa centre case (CC No. 66/2017), where the court sentenced 14 accused, including six FCI officials and eight private persons. Former deputy manager (quality control) Gurmail Singh, assistant manager (quality control) R.S. Sirohi, and technical assistants Ramesh Kumar, Harinder Singh, Harish Kumar, and Satnam Singh were each sentenced to two years of rigorous imprisonment and fined Rs 15,000.
Among the private accused in the Tapa case, Budh Ram, partner of M/s Bansal Rice Mills, Pardeep Sharma, chairman of Sukhanand Rice Udyog Samiti, and Bhushan Kumar, proprietor of M/s Ganga Rice Mills, were sentenced to three years of rigorous imprisonment with a fine of Rs 20,000 each. Five others, namely Vinod Kumar of M/s Jai Jwala Rice Mills, Bharat Bhushan, secretary of Dhaliwal Rice Udyog Samiti, Ashok Kumar and Surinder Kumar of M/s Luxmi Rice Mills, and Ramesh Kumar of M/s B.I.D. Rice Mills, received two years of rigorous imprisonment and a fine of Rs 20,000 each.
