Former Cong leader held for duping man of Rs 9L

Malkeet Singh Heera, a senior Akali leader who had also unsuccessfully contested the assembly election on a Congress ticket in 2012 from Jalalabad, has been arrested by the police on the allegation of duping a person. Heera had joined Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) in 2022.

The police said a case against Heera was registered in this regard last year. The police said Bhajan Dass, a resident of Gariba Sandar village, had alleged that Heera and his son had duped him of Rs 9 lakh with a promise of providing his son a job in the Punjab Police.

He said Heera was known to him as he contested the Assembly election. He said Heera, a then Congress leader, summoned him and offered a job for his son in July 2021. The complainant said Heera demanded Rs 10 lakh for arranging job for his son. However, he was able to pay Rs 9 lakh. Dass said his son did not get any job despite repeated assurances by Heera.

The police said Heera has been arrested from Chak Mochan Wala in Jalalabad subdivision. The police further said Heera was produced before the magistrate, who remanded him to police custody for one day.