ACB seizes Rs 2.44 crore, detains Rajasthan seed corporation director in fake groundnut seed case
Nephew arrested at Lunkaransar with Rs 85 lakh; bribe allegedly paid to let counterfeit seeds return to Gujarat
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Rs 1.59 crore was allegedly recovered during a search of the director's residence.
Jaipur: The Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) of Rajasthan has detained the director of the Rajasthan State Seeds Corporation along with five others and arrested the director’s nephew in an alleged bribery case linked to counterfeit groundnut seeds, recovering around Rs 2.44 crore in cash so far, officials said on Sunday.
According to the ACB, the corporation’s director, Jugal Kishore Bishnoi, was detained for questioning along with Kiran Kapadia, proprietor of the Gajraj brand of groundnut seeds, and three others identified as Ganpat Bishnoi, Sunil Setia and Satpal. The director’s nephew, Swatantra Bishnoi, was arrested separately at Lunkaransar after cash was allegedly found in his possession.
The agency said it had received information that Jugal Kishore Bishnoi was sending Rs 90 lakh through his nephew to Sri Ganganagar. An ACB team stopped the bus carrying him at Lunkaransar and allegedly recovered about Rs 85 lakh during the search. A further Rs 1.59 crore was allegedly recovered during a search of the director’s residence.
The case traces back to action taken on May 27, 2026, when, according to the ACB, samples were collected from Kapadia’s groundnut seed godown and the sale of Gajraj brand seeds was banned. Investigators allege that Kapadia paid roughly Rs 1.20 crore to the director and about Rs 60 lakh to Ganpat to have the consignment of seeds taken back to Gujarat and the matter suppressed.
The ACB further alleges that those linked to the company attempted to influence the action against them by contacting various officials and private individuals — seeking, among other things, to have samples cleared in the laboratory and the sale of the seeds resumed.
The action follows a wider state government drive to ensure quality and certified seeds for farmers, under which substandard seed godowns were raided, sealed, sales were halted and samples sent for laboratory testing. The ACB said further investigation is being conducted under the close supervision of senior officers at its headquarters and the Deputy Inspector General of ACB, Ajmer.
