Jalandhar (Punjab) [India], August 22 (ANI): BJP leader Manoranjan Kalia on Saturday alleged corruption in the Punjab government and demanded that Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann clarify the allegations concerning his wife, Gurpreet Kaur.
Kalia said the party that once claimed to be “staunchly honest” had now proven to be “staunchly dishonest”.
He alleged that corruption charges had been levelled against several ministers and key MLAs and claimed that the issue had now reached the Chief Minister’s household.
Kalia referred to a notice issued by the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) to Gurpreet Kaur following allegations that Rs 5 crore was allegedly demanded and accepted to shield an accused in a rape case.
“Therefore, Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann must provide a clarification and state the truth of the matter. I demand that if there is any truth to this notice, he should resign,” Kalia said.
He said the complaint, filed by former Justice Sardar Ranjit Singh, alleged that attempts were made to suppress the case and that a demand of Rs 5 crore was made.
Kalia said the Punjab Director General of Police (DGP) had also been asked to submit a report on the matter within two weeks.
“The fact remains that the NHRC has sought a report from the Punjab DGP. This entire issue has been raised by former Justice Sardar Ranjit Singh. This implies that the former Justice would not have made baseless claims; rather, the allegations are likely grounded in facts,” he said.
Kalia demanded an explanation from Mann and said party supremo Arvind Kejriwal should demand the Chief Minister’s resignation.
“Given this, Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann should offer an explanation, and the party supremo, Mr Kejriwal, should demand Bhagwant Mann’s resignation,” he said.
Referring to Congress leader Pargat Singh’s press conference in Jalandhar a day earlier, Kalia said major scams had been alleged against the government and claimed that allegations had now surfaced against the Chief Minister’s wife.
“The bottom line is that this is a government of scams; it is a government of the ‘staunchly dishonest,” Kalia said.
He also referred to alleged corruption at Baba Farid University and said the issue was not new.
Kalia alleged that the same pattern was being followed in Delhi and was now playing out in Punjab. He claimed that whether it was a programme or a contract, business deals were being awarded to businessmen and contractors from Delhi instead of those from Punjab.
“This clearly indicates that something fishy is going on. In this sense, this is a government of ‘hardcore dishonest’ people, those who used to call themselves honest,” he said.
The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has issued a notice to the Punjab government over a complaint alleging that Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann’s wife attempted to hush up a rape case in exchange for a bribe.
NHRC member Priyank Kanoongo said the Commission received the complaint from former Punjab and Haryana High Court Justice Ranjit Singh.
“We have received a complaint from former Punjab-Haryana High Court Justice Ranjit Singh alleging that the wife of Punjab CM Bhagwant Man attempted to hush up a rape case in exchange for a bribe of Rs 5 crore. It is a matter of concern when such an allegation is levelled against a person holding a top position in a state regarding a case involving the safety of women and children,” Kanoongo told ANI on Saturday.
The NHRC Bench headed by Kanoongo has directed the Chief Secretary and Director General of Police, Punjab, to inquire into the matter and submit an Action Taken Report (ATR) within two weeks. The Commission has also forwarded the matter to the Women Safety Division, Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India.
The Commission will take further action on the basis of the Action Taken Report, it said. (ANI)
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