Former STC chairman arrested by CBI in wheat scam

New Delhi, July 9 : Former Chairman of State Trading Corporation S M Deewan has been arrested by the CBI in connection with the infamous wheat scam of late 1990s whereby food grains were imported from Australia without the need for them.

Deewan, who retired from the public sector undertaking in 2002, was arrested along with Hari S Sardana, the alleged middleman and produced before the designated court, which remanded them to eight days CBI custody.

Skeletons in this case, which was reopened by the agency on July 7 this year with competent court's permission, started tumbling out after receipt of documents from Australia showed its wheat board had paid commission to secure a supply contract from India.

The FIR naming three top bureaucrats - the then Cabinet Secretary T S R Subramanian, former Food Secretary B K Taimni and Dewan - was reopened for investigations after the CBI had filed a closure report in 2004.

The case had to be closed on the ground that Australian authorities had not responded to the Letters Rogatory issued by India.

The CBI carried out searches at residential premises of Sardana, alleged agent involved in the deal, offices of three of his companies - Demos Poly Products, besides office and residential premises of the then CMD of STC S M Deewan.

ANI