Delhi rice scam: AAP demands CBI probe into Minister Sirsa's alleged role
Synopsis
AAP's Saurabh Bharadwaj has filed a supplementary complaint with the CBI, accusing Delhi Food Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa of being the alleged political mastermind behind a ₹28.87 crore rice scam — and demanding he be added to an existing FIR that currently names only subordinate officials. The move puts a BJP-aligned minister squarely in the crosshairs of a federal corruption probe.
Key Takeaways
AAP has demanded the CBI expand its rice scam probe to include Delhi Food and Supplies Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa .
Saurabh Bharadwaj re-circulated a letter to the CBI Director on 15 October 2026 , originally sent on 24 September .
The CBI registered FIR No.
RC2182026A0014 on 27 August 2026 , naming 3 FCI officials and 5 others for alleged irregularities.
The alleged scam caused a loss of approximately ₹28.87 crore to FCI, Delhi through irregular rice sales to NERAMAC, Guwahati .
Rice payments were reportedly routed through private millers and wholesale dealers with no records of legitimate distribution.
The CBI has not publicly confirmed whether it will expand the scope of its investigation.
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has formally demanded a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the alleged involvement of Delhi Food and Supplies Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa in a multi-crore rice scam involving the irregular sale of rice by the Food Corporation of India (FCI), Delhi to a government agency in Guwahati. The demand was made public on Thursday, 15 October 2026, when Delhi AAP President Saurabh Bharadwaj re-circulated a letter he had originally sent to the CBI Director on 24 September.
What AAP Has Alleged
Bharadwaj referred to a CBI FIR dated 27 August — registered under case number RC2182026A0014 — and demanded that the probe agency formally expand its investigation to include Minister Sirsa. In his letter, he alleged 'active collusion, abuse of official position, and financial angles' on the minister's part.
The AAP leader claimed that the FIR contained a 'critical and glaring omission' — that Sirsa, who he described as the 'alleged primary political mastermind and facilitator of this institutional siphon,' had been left out of the formal list of accused.
Bharadwaj also urged the CBI to 'immediately raid, seize, and secure all official file routing logs, personal staff records, and electronic email communications from the Office of the Minister of Food and Supplies, GNCTD, for the period between January 2026 and June 2026, to prevent any deletion or tampering.'
The Rice Scam: What the FIR Says
The CBI registered the corruption case in August 2026 on a complaint filed by the Union Ministry of Consumer Affairs. The FIR names three FCI officials and five others over alleged irregularities in the allotment of rice to the North Eastern Regional Agricultural Marketing Corporation (NERAMAC), Guwahati, under the category 'Sale of Rice to State Government/Corporations of State.'
According to the FIR, the alleged wrongdoings caused a loss of approximately ₹28.87 crore to FCI. Investigators found that payments for the rice allocation to NERAMAC were reportedly routed through various private entities — either millers or wholesale dealers — with no records confirming the rice was distributed for its stated purpose.
It was further alleged that had the quantity lifted by NERAMAC at a concessional price been auctioned at the reserve price of ₹28,900 per metric tonne, FCI would have realised an additional ₹28.87 crore.
AAP's Claim of a Cover-Up
Bharadwaj raised suspicions about an attempt to shield Sirsa, pointing to what he described as an asymmetry in the probe: subordinate officials of FCI and NERAMAC had been named in the FIR, while the minister who allegedly 'authorised, enabled, and repeatedly cleared this black-market commercial pipeline' remained free to 'influence the probe and tamper with crucial state records,' according to the AAP leader's letter.
'Therefore, this supplementary complaint is filed to place the explicit, document-backed criminal acts of Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa directly on your record, demanding his immediate inclusion in the ongoing criminal investigation,' Bharadwaj wrote.
Political Context and What Comes Next
The allegations come at a politically charged moment in Delhi, with AAP seeking to put BJP-aligned minister Sirsa on the defensive. This is the latest in a series of escalating political charges between the two parties over governance of the capital. The CBI has not publicly responded to AAP's supplementary complaint. Whether the probe agency will expand the scope of its FIR to include Sirsa remains to be seen, and his response to the allegations has not been reported at the time of publication.
Point of View
It invites scrutiny of whether the probe is going far enough. Whether the CBI acts on the supplementary complaint or quietly files it away will be a telling signal of the probe's independence. Delhi's governance fractures — between an elected state government and the Centre's administrative levers — create exactly the conditions where accountability gets lost between institutions.
NationPress
15 Oct 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Delhi rice scam about?
The Delhi rice scam involves alleged irregular sale of rice by the Food Corporation of India (FCI), Delhi, to the North Eastern Regional Agricultural Marketing Corporation (NERAMAC) in Guwahati. The CBI registered an FIR in August 2026 after a complaint by the Union Ministry of Consumer Affairs, alleging the irregularities caused a loss of approximately ₹28.87 crore to FCI.
Why is AAP demanding a CBI probe into Minister Sirsa?
AAP leader Saurabh Bharadwaj alleges that Delhi Food and Supplies Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa was the primary political facilitator of the rice scam but was omitted from the CBI's FIR, which currently names only subordinate officials. Bharadwaj filed a supplementary complaint demanding Sirsa's immediate inclusion in the criminal investigation.
What does the CBI FIR say about the rice scam?
The CBI FIR, registered on 27 August 2026 under case number RC2182026A0014, names three FCI officials and five others. It alleges rice was allocated to NERAMAC at a concessional price, with payments routed through private millers and dealers, and no records confirm the rice reached its stated distribution target.
Who is Manjinder Singh Sirsa?
Manjinder Singh Sirsa is the Food and Supplies Minister of Delhi and a leader associated with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). AAP has alleged he played a central role in enabling the rice irregularities but has not yet been named as an accused in the CBI case.
What action has the CBI taken so far?
The CBI has registered a corruption case against three FCI officials and five others, but has not publicly responded to AAP's demand to include Minister Sirsa in the investigation. Whether the probe will be expanded remains uncertain at the time of publication.
