Punjab Minister sacked, arrested for asking bribe for tenders |
Ruling Aam Aadmi Party's Health Minister in Punjab Vijay Singla had
been allegedly taking 1 per cent commission on tenders. Before sacking
him, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann called him to his residence and
played a record in which Singla is heard telling a man from Bathinda that
he should give the commission ('shukrana') to his nephew.
AAP national convenor and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal tweeted,
“Proud of you Bhagwant. Ur action has brought tears to my eyes. The
whole nation today feels proud of AAP.”
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CHANDIGARH, May 24: Punjab Health Minister Vijay Singla was sacked and arrested
over corruption charges on Tuesday. The Aam Aadmi Party leader had been allegedly
taking 1 per cent commission on tenders floated by the Health and Family Welfare
department.
AAP leader and Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann said Singla had admitted
to the corruption charges. Singla has been arrested by the anti-corruption cell
of the Punjab police after Mann ordered that an FIR be registered. AAP is the
only party that has the integrity, courage and uprightness to take action against
its own leaders on grounds of corruption, he said.
AAP national convenor and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal tweeted, “Proud
of you Bhagwant. Ur action has brought tears to my eyes. The whole nation today
feels proud of AAP.”
Mann said that the decision was taken to ensure that his Government remains
free of corrupt practices. He said that such an incident had happened only for
the second time in the country. “In 2015, Kejriwal had sacked his food and civil
supplies minister after a video of his seeking bribe was shown to him. I want
to tell everyone that I won’t tolerate corruption of even ?1. We had taken an
oath in martyr Bhagat Singh’s Khatkar Kalan village. We promised we would run
a corruption-free government,” he said.
Mann had earlier called Singla to his residence and played a recording of his
demanding 'shukrana' (commission). Singla is heard telling a man from Bathinda
in the record that he should give the commission amount to his nephew. The department
buys thousands of crores worth of medicines and medical equipment through tenders.
"I am taking strict action against the Minister. I am removing him from the
Cabinet. We have found substantial proof of his involvement in corruption case.
I do not care if the Opposition parties want to use this to hit out at us, saying
a minister removed on corruption charges within two months. The point is that
we will not tolerate anyone indulging in such malpractices. Our party national
convenor has made it clear that corruption will not be tolerated. He had himself
removed a minister in Delhi in 2015 after corruption charges were levelled against
the minister,” the Chief Minister said in a video message on social media.
“I could have brushed the complaint under the carpet since neither the media
nor Opposition parties was aware of it. But since the Arvind Kejriwal-led Aam
Aadmi Party has adopted zero tolerance against corruption, I immediately sacked
the Minister,” he said.
"The AAP is the only party that has the integrity, courage and uprightness
to take action against their own on grounds of corruption. We saw it in Delhi,
now we are witnessing it in Punjab. ZERO TOLERANCE FOR CORRUPTION," party leader
Raghav Chadha tweeted.
Vijay Singla had won Mansa constituency with the highest number of votes in
the recent election. The first AAP Government was formed in Punjab after the
Assembly elections two months ago. Bhagwant Mann was sworn in as Chief Minister
on March 16 last. He had said that the AAP's top priority is fighting corruption.
Meanwhile, AAP MLA Dr Balbir Singh and 3 others, including his wife and son,
were awarded 3-year rigorous imprisonment in an 11-year old assault case relating
to ancestral property on Monday. They were granted bail. Balbir Singh is the
MLA from Patiala (rural).
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Although its immediate job was to save American taxpayers billions by slashing waste, eliminating fraud, cutting Government bloat and ensuring utmost efficiency in administration for the good of the people.
(Today's headlines )
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Ailing Asiatic lion Pataudi too dies of bird flu at Kanpur zoo
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48 tourist destinations closed in Kashmir following Pahalgam terror attack
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