Congress seeks court-monitored CBI probe into organic cotton 'scam' in MP

The Congress on Saturday, 26 July, demanded a court-monitored CBI probe into an alleged scam in the sale of normal cotton as organic cotton in Madhya Pradesh.

Former Madhya Pradesh chief minister and senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh alleged that India's image is being hurt globally as the country has lost credibility in the certification of organic products.

Addressing a press conference in New Delhi, Singh alleged that the scam is estimated to be of the tune of Rs 2.1 lakh crore in the name of selling normally produced cotton as organic cotton.

There was no immediate comment available from the Madhya Pradesh government.

Giving details, Singh said that in 2001, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry launched the National Programme for Organic Production (NPOP), which is implemented by the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA).

He said its objective is to certify and regulate the export of organic products. Under this framework, NPOP accredits certification bodies (CBs), which in turn verify internal control systems (ICS).

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The ICSs are groups of 25 to 500 farmers who grow organic cotton. As of 2025, there are approximately 6,046 ICSs and 35 CBs.

Singh, however, alleged that most farmers who are shown as registered under ICSs are neither growing organic cotton nor are they aware of their presence in the system.

"In short, ICS groups have deliberately committed fraud by adding farmers' names to obtain transaction certificates,” Singh alleged.

With the result, he claimed, while the farmers struggle to get fair prices for their produce, some powerful traders are selling non-organic (Bt) cotton as 'organic', earning up to six times the profit.

While these exporters are also committing massive tax and GST evasion, at the international level, he claimed that India is now being seen as a "hub of fraud in the organic market", leading to cancellations of recognition by global agencies.

He also claimed that raids on just two commercial entities uncovered Rs 750 crore in GST evasion, revealing a Rs 7,500 crore scam from just these two, as tax evasion accounted for only 5 per cent of the total fraud amount.

Referring to the international fallout, the former chief minister claimed that in October 2020, GOTS (Global Organic Textile Standard) caught "fake transaction certificates" in India, banned 11 companies, and revoked the accreditation of a major certifier.

In June 2021, the USDA (USA) ended India's automatic recognition for organic certification, Singh claimed, while revealing that in November 2021, the EU cancelled the recognition of five Indian certifiers due to restricted chemicals found in supposedly organic products.

Singh said on 27 August 2024, he highlighted the organic cotton fraud in Madhya Pradesh through a letter to the prime minister.

The Congress leader demanded the constitution of a special investigation team (SIT) led by the CBI under the supervision of a sitting high court judge. Seeking transparent inspections by the certifying bodies, he also demanded fair compensation for the exploited farmers.