The Congress alleged Wednesday that actions of the BJP government in Madhya Pradesh benefited sand mining contractors and caused a loss of over Rs 1,200 crore to the exchequer.
State Congress spokesperson Shobha Oza said that contracts for sand mining were granted for a period of five years in 2016 through an e-auction.
"The government allowed the contractors to pay the bid amount in 12 instalments. The instalment was not fixed. So contractor paid less in initial instalments," Oza alleged.
The government suspended these contracts in May 2017 for no reason, and the contractors subsequently did not pay the final instalment, she claimed.
The contracts were suspended 25 days before the annual ban on sand mining during the monsoon came into force on June 15, she said.
As the contractors did not pay the final instalment of the bid amount, the government lost Rs 1,200 crore, she alleged.
"The government should order an inquiry by the CBI into this scam. We also demand the chief minister and mining minister resign over the issue," she said.
State BJP spokesperson Rajnish Agrawal called the allegations a political stunt.
"If there was such irregularity about a year ago, the Congress had the opportunity to approach investigating agencies and courts. Why they were sitting on the issue? They are levelling allegations out of desperation," Agrawal said.
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