BJP slams govt for buying wheat at 'inflated' price

The BJP today said the government's decision to import wheat was "a shameless loot of the nation and a betrayal of the Indian farmers."

Terming the imports as the UPA government's "Wheatgate," party spokesperson Prakash Javadekar criticised the import of wheat at an "inflated" price of $390 per metric tonne (MT)

"The government first rejected the bid that offered wheat at $263 per MT in June, saying the price was too high. Suddenly after 10 days, the government changed its mind and ordered import of 5.7 lakh tonnes wheat at $325 per MT," said Javadekar.

He said this wheat was yet to arrive but the government floated a third tender and placed an order for nearly 8 lakh tonnes at an "inflated" rate of $390 per MT. "This is daylight robbery," he said.

"The government gave many reasons for cancelling the first tender for $263 per MT. The main reason was that the prices were too high," he said.

He said new arrivals were expected in the international markets by the end of September and hence the prices were expected to soften. Demanding a CBI inquiry, he sought Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's intervention to stop the "costly" imports.

The situation, he said, was made worse by the fact that the Indian farmers were paid only Rs 850 per quintal by the government, which was paying Rs 1,600 per quintal to the foreign farmers.