BJP team arrives to probe multi-crore mining scam in Orissa

Bhubaneswar, Nov 4 : A six-member BJP Parliamentary team, led by Rajya Sabha member Balbir Punja, arrived here today on a three-day visit to get first hand information and probe into the multi-crore mining scam in Keonjhar district.

The BJP has been demanding a CBI probe into the scam, alleging the involvement of ruling party leaders, government officials and the mining mafias in the scam.

The Orissa government had already suspended at least eight officials, including the Director of Mines, after the vigilance sleuths raided several mining companies and found prima facie in the illegal mining involving hundreds of crores.

On his arrival, BJP MP Balbir Punj told newspersons that the party would visit Joda and Badbil areas in the mine-rich Kenonjhar district for an on the spot investigation into the multi-crore mining scam.

He said the party would raise the mining scam in the coming winter session of the Parliament and reiterate its demand for a CBI probe to unearth the unholy nexus between the ruling party leaders and the mine mafias in the scam.

State Steel and Mines Minister Raghunath Mohanty, however, described the visit of the BJP Parliamentary team to the mines area as ''politically motivated''.

He said ever since the mining scam reported, the Naveen Patnaik government had ordered a vigilance probe into the incident and the vigilance sleuths have already conducted several raids in the mining areas and sincerely probing into the incident.

--UNI

(c) 2009 Published with permission from United News of India.
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