Lalit Mohan and Chitleen K.Sethi
Tribune News ServicePatiala, August 6
The Punjab Vigilance Bureau has arrested Punjabi University Registrar Baldev Singh Sandhu in a graft case. Sandhu was arrested red-handed by a VB team at his residence here this evening while reportedly accepting a bribe of Rs 1 lakh to save a college from disaffiliation.
Complainant Ram Singh Dhall, general secretary of the Baba Dhall Educational Society, contacted vigilance DIG B.S. Bawa last week and reported that Sandhu had demanded Rs 5 lakh from the management to waive a penalty of Rs 10 lakh and save the college from disaffiliation. The first installment of the bribe was to be paid at Sandhu’s residence at Urban Estate here at 7pm. Dhall, along with shadow witness Rajinder Duggal, handed over Rs 1 lakh to Sandhu.
The VB team comprising Joint Director B.S. Sidhu, DSP Anil Joshi and two government witnesses Maninderpal Singh SDO (B&R) and Jalwinder Singh SDO (B&R) caught Sandhu red- handed. A case was registered against him.
According to sources, Sandhu had been causing ‘trouble’ to the society since last year.The society runs an education college and a Law College, both affiliated to Punjabi University. In 2006, Sandhu allegedly demanded gratification from the college, but was refused.
During the annual inspection of the college in September that year, an inspection team of the university reported four deficiencies in the Law College. Sandhu slapped a fine of Rs 10 lakh on the college, allegedly without giving it a chance to rectify the deficiencies.
The management made a representation to the vice-chancellor, who ordered a re-inspection and made Sandhu a member of the inspection committee. This time the committee listed as many as 16 deficiencies in the running of the college. The college was issued a show-cause notice for disaffiliation.
Sandhu, however, offered to bail out the college if the management paid him Rs 5 lakh.
Sandhu is a professor of psychology. He had taken over as registrar on August 1. He was earlier director, public relations.
His appointment as registrar had evoked a controversy as many teachers alleged that seniority had been ignored in his appointment. Today at the syndicate meeting, a decision regarding his appointment as registrar was kept pending due to objections by members of government.
