Case filed in Abohar waterworks scam

Our Correspondent

Abohar, August 17

The Vigilance Bureau has registered a case under Sections 420, 465, 467, 468 and 471 of the IPC against Gurditt Singh here in connection with alleged usurping of Municipal Council land in the old waterworks area. DSP Gurinderjit Singh has been designated as the investigation officer.

Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh had two years back ordered a vigilance probe into the alleged scam. He had also visited the site in November 2011 before addressing a public rally organised by the then legislator Sunil Jakhar at Nehru Stadium and assured of taking the necessary action.

Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa, MLA, had on June 15, 2017, raised the issue of “illegal transfer” of land of the waterworks at Abohar in the name of persons considered close to senior Akali leaders. Randhawa had earlier raised the issue during the Assembly session also and the Chief Minister had ordered a vigilance inquiry but nothing came out of it. The then Minister for Local Government Navjot Singh Sidhu had said the issue had massive criminal ramifications and needed vigilance probe.

As per the FIR, state government had in 1961 acquired 7.26 acres of land to extend old waterworks by constructing additional reservoirs but the Municipal Council did not get mutation changed in its favour. In 2006 the council decided to construct ‘Nai Sadak’ to link the Sadar Thana toad with the state highway and started the process of arranging land for it. The then Executive Officer Diwan Chand Verma allegedly benefitted Gurditt Singh without any authorisation by exchanging his 1.08 kanal of land with 5.08 kanal of land that was actually a part of the waterworks land.

The Revenue Department normally takes 45 days to transfer mutation rights but in this case the mutation was transferred in favour of Gurditt Singh within three days. Verma died after superannuation of service but it appeared that he and other officials connived with the beneficiary in the prime government land exchange deal. This caused heavy financial loss to the government. The role of other officials in the alleged scam also needs to be probed, the VB said.