Punjab Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) President Kewal Singh Dhillon on Saturday, 27 June alleged that the diversion of subsidised urea fertiliser — meant for farmers — to government-owned plants in Punjab constitutes a major corruption racket operating under official patronage, and demanded a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the entire matter. Dhillon squarely blamed the state's Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government, arguing that a scam of this scale could not have occurred without the complicity of senior officials and political figures.

What the Allegations Say

According to Dhillon, thousands of bags of subsidised urea supplied by the Centre were allegedly diverted to four government plants — including Markfed and Milkfed — without documentation or batch numbers. He argued that the absence of paperwork on such a large consignment was not an administrative oversight but a deliberate cover-up enabled by those in power.

The BJP leader stated that the Centre, under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, provides subsidised urea at just ₹266 per 45-kg bag against a market price of ₹2,800 — a subsidy designed to ease the financial burden on farmers. He alleged that a 'fertiliser mafia', backed by the state government, was systematically depriving farmers of this benefit by rerouting the subsidised stock to factories.

Why Dhillon Wants CBI, Not State Police

Dhillon dismissed the registration of cases against private companies as 'eyewash', arguing that limiting the investigation to non-state actors would shield the real beneficiaries. He insisted that a CBI investigation is the only credible mechanism to establish accountability at the political and bureaucratic level.

He noted that he had previously flagged shortages of urea and DAP fertilisers with the central government, and that the Centre had responded by supplying fertiliser in excess of farmers' requirements — making the alleged diversion even more difficult to explain away as a supply-side failure.

AAP Government's Position

The AAP-led Punjab state government had not issued an official response to Dhillon's allegations at the time of reporting. The BJP's demand for a CBI probe, however, places the state administration under pressure to either contest the claims or initiate its own credible inquiry.

Political Context

The allegations come amid an already adversarial relationship between the BJP-led Centre and the AAP government in Punjab. Critics of the BJP note that such demands for CBI probes frequently coincide with electoral cycles or political pressure campaigns. Nonetheless, the specific details cited — undocumented fertiliser bags reaching government-owned entities — are verifiable claims that warrant scrutiny regardless of the political context. Dhillon has called for strict action against all those found guilty once the truth behind the alleged scam is established.