The News Freedom
Chandigarh, October 13
Punjab Rural Development and Panchayat Minister Laljit Singh Bhullar on Friday exposed a scam of about Rs 121 crore in the department. Taking strong exception of the scam, the Minister directed the officials to immediately charge-sheet around dozen officials of the Rural Development and Panchayat Department along with six sarpanchs. He also instructed to hand over the further probe to the Vigilance Bureau.
The Cabinet Minister categorically said that the zero-tolerance policy against corruption adopted by Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann’s government led to unearth the biggest scam in the Rural Development and Panchayat department.
Giving details, Bhullar further said that panchayats of Village Salempur, Sekhewal, Selkiana, Bounkar Gujran, Kadiana Khurd and Dhanansu of Block Ludhiana-2, have received an award of Rs 252.94 crore after the acquisition of hundreds of acres of Panchayat land of these villages, but Rs 120.87 crore were withdrawn from this amount with the connivance of some corrupt officers and employees of the department along with sarpanchs.
The Rural Development and Panchayat Minister said that when the matter came to his notice, he immediately ordered thorough probe into the matter and an investigation team was formed under the supervision of Joint Director level officer.
The Cabinet Minister further informed that the investigation revealed that with the mutual collusion, Block Development and panchayat officers (BDPOs), sanchayat secretaries and sarpanchs have withdrawn Rs 120.87 crores from the fixed deposit (FD) at their own level and the amount was spent without administrative and technical approvals of the department, whereas the policy and guidelines issued by the department, bound the village Panchayat to deposit the award money of acquisition of its land, in the State Bank of India as Fixed Deposit. No one has any right to withdraw such FD without the approval of the government. He informed that only the interest received from this FD can be spent on development works of the village after taking administrative and technical approval with the advice of technical officials.