Sidhu raises cable ‘scam’ in cabinet, CM passes it to AG

WILL HOLD A PRESS CONFERENCE ON THURSDAY TO GIVE PROOF AGAINST FASTWAY, SIDHU SAYS AFTER THE MEETING

CHANDIGARH After informing the Punjab assembly that Fastway Transmissions allegedly did not pay its dues to his department and evaded multiple taxes, local bodies minister Navjot Singh Sidhu took up the issue in a Punjab cabinet meeting on Wednesday.

Amid media reports that said he and chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh are “not on the same page” on the issue, Sidhu explained that the company enjoyed “monopoly over cable business of Punjab and evaded taxes with impunity under the political patronage of the previous Parkash Singh Badal government” of the SADBJP alliance.

Amarinder, who has been avoiding a direct reply to Sidhu’s assertions, is learnt to have said that if there was evidence against Fastway on tax evasion, the matter could be discussed with Punjab advocate general Atul Nanda and the multi-system operator (MSO) could be asked to pay penalty.

“I had raised the issue in the cabinet and will hold a press conference on Thursday to give proof against Fastway,” Sidhu said after the meeting.

Punjab finance minister Manpreet Badal, who had drafted the party’s poll manifesto that promised an end to the “monopoly” over cable network in Punjab, said there was unanimity in the cabinet on the fact that there should be a level-playing field for all cable operators.

“The chief minister said if a particular company has evaded taxes and not taken requisite permissions from government, it should face penalty. He has advised us to discuss the matter with the AG. There are two issues — of enforcement of law and of ensuring fair play. We are committed to honouring our poll promise,” Manpreet said after the meeting.

Even during the discussion on state’s new transport policy, the ministers expressed resentment over the “free run” being allowed to buses that the Badals owned.

“The transport authorities act against the mafia for few days and then become lax. It shows that the government is not serious about ending the monopoly of a few,” a cabinet minister said, requesting anonymity.

RAISED IN ASSEMBLY

On the last day of the budget session that ended on June 23, Sidhu, while replying to a query by a Congress MLA, had alleged Fastway did not pay his department (local government) any road-cutting charges for laying its cable in Punjab.

He then went on to detail evasion of other taxes by the multisystem cable operator, pegging the total value of the “scam” at Rs 684 crore.