SAD for probe into allegations of graft against minister Randhawa
CHANDIGARH/ROPAR : Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) on Friday accused Punjab home minister Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa of accepting “huge sums in bribes” in lieu of posting district police chiefs, particularly in the border belt of the state.
In a press conference in Chandigarh, party MLA Bikram Singh Majithia referred to a meeting of the state cabinet, when minister Rana Gurjeet Singh purportedly levelled allegations against Randhawa for having taken money to post senior superintendents of police (SSPs) and officials of lower ranks.
He asked chief minister Charanjit Singh Channi to come clean on the issue, alleging that he was trying to hush up the matter.
“According to the allegations levelled by Rana Gurjeet Singh, the home minister took Rs 2-5 crore for the postings. But he (Channi) tried to put the matter under the carpet as he asked the officers present in the meeting to leave and shut the door,” Majithia said. The matter should be probed by a central agency, he said. He alleged that Randhawa is known for patronising gangsters such as Jaggu Bhagwanpuria and Lawrence Bishnoi and even gave VIP status to UP don Mukhtiar Ansari during his tenure as jails minister.
‘My life under threat’
Citing “intelligence inputs”, Majithia said his life was under threat, but the state home minister refused to take action. “Some persons who conducted a recce of my Amritsar house a few days back were nabbed with a tiffin bomb and a hand grenade. They are linked to terror outfit Khalistan Task Force (KTF),” he said.
He also claimed that the police officers, who were transferred after more than 120 persons were killed in the 2018 hooch tragedy, were back to their old postings.
Randhawa was not available for comments despite several attempts to reach him.
When contacted, minister Rana Gurjeet refused to comment on what happened in the cabinet meeting on Thursday.
Sukhbir slams CM Channi
SAD president Sukhbir Singh Badal on Friday slammed CM Channi for not ordering a probe into bribe being taken by home minister Randhawa for postings of senior police officers.
“It is condemnable that despite minister Rana Gurjeet made the accusation on record in a cabinet meeting, no probe was ordered,” he said talking to media after rallies of party candidates Daljeet Singh Cheema and Sunita Rani in Ropar and Balachaur.
Channi cannot suppress the people of the state by resorting to “sacrilegious actions” like giving orders to play DJs loudly to drown out their voices, he said.