Chhattisgarh Congress rakes up cooperative bank scam

RAIPUR: Alleging that Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh and his Cabinet ministers were involved in the Indira Priyadarshini Mahila Nagrik Sahkari Bank scam, state Congress today released a CD and its transcript purportedly carrying narco-analysis test of a prime accused in the seven-year-old scam.


Congress also claimed that late Dinesh Patel, son of late PCC chief Nand Kumar Patel was planning to reveal this information on June 15, but he met with an untimely demise in Darbh Maoist attack.

Chhattisgarh PCC, programme coordinator Bhupesh Baghel and the party spokesperson Shailesh Nitin Trivedi released a CD purportedly containing narco-analysis test record of the prime accused Umesh Sinha at a press conference here at Congress Bhawan.

It may be recalled that Sinha was the Manager of Indira Priyadarshini Bank that went bust after multi-crore scam that was unearthed in the year 2006.

Sinha and directors of the cooperative bank were arrested in this connection.

Baghel said,"in narco analysis, prime accused Sinha has claimed that the bank officials had paid hefty amount to Chief Minister and his ministers."

Later, he sought a CBI probe into the matter. Further triggering up the political controversy, Baghel and Trivedi said that, Dinesh Patel, who was killed in the Maoist ambush on a Congress convoy on May 25, had sent an SMS to party leaders that a "major disclosure" about the state government would be made on June 15 which can force CM to step down from his post.

"Probably the son of late PCC Chief Nand Kumar Patel was planning to reveal this information only," they added.

When asked about the genuineness of the CD, Baghel dared the state government to issue the original transcript and compare the contents.

Meanwhile, strongly rejecting the allegations, School Education Brijmohan Agrawal said that the Congress has a tradition of releasing CDs on any fake issue as the polls come closer and it has repeated it once more.

"This CD has already come in public domain few years ago. There was no similarity in the statements of Bank Manger Umesh Sinha and other accused during interrogation. Even the doctor who had conducted the Narco test was terminated by CBI in another case," Minister Agrawal told reporters.

"Since the Congress now does not have any issue to speak therefore they are using this. Nothing more ignominy could be that the name of son of late Nand Kumar Patel is being added with this issue," he said.

Charging further the minster said the matter is in court and if Congress has new facts they then can approach to the court.

Earlier Inspector General of Police (Raipur range) GP Singh told reporters that the officer investigating the case has found several serious contradictions in the statement on the CD and evidences on record.

The IGP also said that Narco, polygraph test or lie detector test are supposed only as corroborative evidence and not sold legal evidences.