Patna, June 9: The BJP stuck to its guns today over the files that have gone missing from the office of the animal husbandry and fish resources department at the old secretariat, and demanded a CBI probe into the matter.

The government has maintained that the files that went missing in April were not related to the fodder scam in which Lalu Prasad was convicted, while the main opposition party BJP is accusing the Nitish Kumar-led Grand Alliance government of protecting the RJD chief.

BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi today said that over 50 of the files that are missing pertained to fodder scam cases. The department's decision to set up a three-member committee is nothing but eyewash to hush up the matter, he claimed,.

"The files had been stolen under a well-hatched conspiracy," Sushil said, adding that the missing files included those related to former MLA R.K. Rana, Krishna Mohan Prasad, Sheshmuni Ram, Chhotelal Choudhary, Shivbalak Choudhary, Braj Bhushan Prasad, Brajnandan Sharma, Om Prakash Diwakar, Jainul Bhengraj and Raja Ram - all accused in the fodder scam.

Sushil claimed that most of the files were concerned with the cases that were still pending in court.

"A few of them (files) pertained to the complainants of the fodder scam like S.K. Modi, Lalan Singh and Prem Chandra Mishra," he said.

He said it was surprising that the matter was reported to the police station after four days of the incident, and pointed out that a police constable was assigned to quiz the employees of the department 22 days after the FIR lodged.

The secretariat police have sought details of the files that have gone missing.

Secretariat police station house officer (SHO) Amarendra Jha said today that the investigating officer of the case, Bibha Kumari, has been directed to get details from the department concerned about the missing files. Jha said the investigating officer would find out when and who took over the charge of the missing files.

What has baffled the officials is that the files were stolen despite CCTV cameras installed at the office.

"This is a high security area and nobody is allowed to enter the corridor in which the office of the department is located. Security personnel are also deployed to keep a close watch on the visitors as well as employees of the department concerned," a police officer said.

The SHO, however, maintained that the missing files were not related to any of the fodder scam cases.

"Most of the files were related to high court cases, which have been disposed of and settled long before," he claimed.

Secretariat deputy superintendent of police Ashok Kumar Choudhary had told journalists yesterday that most of the files pertained to court cases, including one involving Jagdish Sharma, a fodder scam accused. Animal husbandry and fish resources department minister Awadhesh Kumar Singh had also denied that the missing files were related to the fodder scam.