Justice Narang submits report into sand mining auctions to Amarinder

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, August 10

The Justice JS Narang Commission probing allegations of irregularities in the sand mining auctions in Punjab has submitted its report to Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh.

Justice Narang met the Chief Minister at the latter’s official residence here on Thursday morning and handed over the report. The Chief Minister has marked the report to the Chief Secretary and asked him to revert with his comments within two weeks.

The Chief Minister had ordered the constitution of the one-man commission following allegations involving cabinet minister Rana Gurjit Singh in the sand mining auctions conducted by the Department of Mining in May this year.

The commission of Justice JS Narang (retd) was mandated to probe all aspects of the allegations of impropriety against the Irrigation and Power Minister in the multi-crore sand mining auctions.

The commission was tasked with inquiring whether the terms and conditions of the bid were adhered to while awarding the tender of two mines to ex-employees of the minister and whether Gurjit Singh had in any manner influenced the price bid at which these two mines were awarded, and if the bidders were bidding on behalf of the minister in question for the said two mines.

The commission, set up under the Commission of Inquiry Act, 1952, was also asked to inquire whether the minister had received any undue financial benefit or gain from the award of such two mines to the bidders and if there had been any loss to the state revenue by the award of such two mines to the bidders at the price in question.

In a report on May 25, The Tribune had highlighted how four employees of Power and Irrigation Minister Rana Gurjit had bagged mining contracts for four sites. Taking cognisance of the report, the Chief Minister had constituted a judicial commission of inquiry under Justice JS Narang.

Minister’s employees--Amit Bahadur, a cook, got the contract of a mining site at Saidpur Khurd village in Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar (Nawanshahr) for Rs 26.51 crore; Kulwinder Pal Singh, a deputy general manager, got the contract of Mehadipur quarry for Rs 9.21 crore; Gurinder Singh, bagged a quarry in Rampur Kalan village in Mohali for Rs 4.11 crore; and Balraj Singh bagged a mining contract at Bairsal village for Rs 10.58 crore.

Later, Balraj Singh and Gurinder Singh backed out when it came to depositing 55 per cent of the bidding amount. So they were not allotted the mining sites.