Rajkot:

18 more accused including 2 officials each of procurement agencies NAFED and GUJCOT have been arrested in connection with the sensational groundnut soil mixing case of Pedhla village in Jetpur taluka of Rajkot district.

The original complainant of the case and GUJCOT official (Saurashtra zone manager) Magan Zalawadia has also been arrested and made an accused in the case.

Addressing a press conference here SP Rajkot Balram Meena today informed this.

He said that after the finding soil, stone and mud in groundnut sacks procured at MSP and kept in godwon number one in Pedhla, Zalawadia had filed the complaint in the night of July 31 quite late even after continuous instructions from higher ups in the administration.

‘We had doubt on him right from the beginning. We had nabbed 3 accused and members of Dhanej Seva Sahkari Mandali which had procured the groundnut and after taking their remand from court yesterday when we further inquired we got solid evidence about Zalawadia’s role in the crime. We also learnt that NAFED and GUJCOT officials were also hand in gloves in the matter. Apart from 2 officials of each of the two agencies one warehouse manager has also been nabbed,’ he said.

‘We have now nabbed 18 people during a night long operation with seven teams with the cooperation of Junagadh, Morbi and Rajkot rural LCB. They will be interrogated further and if roles of some other persons or institutions comes to fore action will be taken. The government has given us clear instructions to not to get influenced by anyone in this investigation,’ he said.

Meena said that the mixing in the groundnut sacks was done at some other place after procurement at the procurement center. He said that more investigation in this regard was own.

To a query he said that as Zalawadia was manager of GUJCOT in Saurashtra region his possible role in the two incidents of fire in groundnut godowns in Gondal and Shapar verval would also be investigated.

DeshGujarat