Chandigarh, January 23
Shiromani Akali Dal president Parkash Singh Badal and his wife may have joint assets worth only Rs 9 crore, but Akali heavyweight Bibi Jagir Kaur has wealth nine times more than her party president.
Former SGPC chief Bibi Jagir Kaur’s net worth is more than a whopping Rs 80 crore – as per the disclosure she made today while filing nomination papers for the Bholath assembly constituency in Kapurthala. Her disclosure even outshines that of Punjab Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh, who is worth Rs 39 crore.
A chunk of Jagir Kaur’s wealth comes from a piece of ancestral property she inherited from her in-laws’. About 13 acre in size, this land in Begowal town, by chance, fell into the category of urban land. That’s how its price skyrocketed to over Rs 80 crore. “The declared worth of this land has been made on the basis of the price fixed by the District Collector,” Jagir Kaur’s lawyer told The Tribune today.
Apart from this property, Jagir Kaur has two vehicles in her name. She owns a tractor worth Rs three lakh and an Innova worth Rs 6 lakh. She has jewellery worth Rs nine lakh and cash in hand worth Rs two lakh. Besides, she had six bank accounts wit deposits worth Rs 2.50 lakh approximately. Not just that, she is an income tax assessee and she paid income tax of Rs 78,597 last year.
Bibi Jagir Kaur, who is challenging Mr Sukhpal Singh Khaira of the Congress for the third time from Bholath, has also disclosed her entire criminal record in the affidavit submitted along with the nomination papers today. She has five FIRs against her. Of these, while two have been stayed by the High Court, the one pertaining to the murder of her daughter Harpreet Kaur, still stands. This FIR dated October 3, 2000 was lodged under Sections 302/365/201 and 313 of the IPC. The charges include murder, abduction and destruction of evidence.
Another standing FIR against Jagir Kaur is the one filed in Samanpur on account of public protests. Jagir Kaur’s affidavit also mentions other FIRs which were stayed by the High Court. These include the one regarding electricity theft lodged on November 7, 2002, the FIR lodged when she joined protested against the arrest of Parkash Singh Badal in 2003 and another one lodged by Kulbir Kaur Dhami, wife of Khalistan ideologue Kanwar Pal Dhami.
