ChandigarhShiromani Akali Dal today demanded a time bound probe into the entire land, power, housing and property developer nexus operating under political patronage in Punjab.
In a statement here, senior SAD leader Bikram Singh Majithia said the arrest of cabinet minister Sanjeev Arora by the Enforcement Directorate had exposed the seriousness of the financial irregularities network functioning in the State. “Every individual linked to alleged GST fraud, illegal Dubai money transfers and suspicious land dealings must face strict investigation”, he asserted.
Asserting that very serious allegations had been levelled against Mr Sanjeev Arora, the SAD leader said “farmers deserve answers on allegations that land was bought cheap and sold at massive profits through a powerful nexus. It appears that Mr Arora was working as a fund raiser and money exchanger for chief minister Bhagwant Mann and Arvind Kejriwal. Money looted from the State should be probed and every rupee should be recovered”. He also asserted that Punjab could not be turned into a hub of corruption, middlemen and political protection.
“If State Vigilance can act against opposition leaders, the same law must apply equally to ruling party leaders and their associates”, he added.
Mr Majithia also demanded that look out notices should be issued against the chief minister’s OSD Rajbir Ghuman as well as Nitin Gohal and Pritpal Singh Dhindsa following large scale money seizure and during a raid in Mohali two days back. “It is clear that Nitin and Pritpal are working as middlemen and are responsible for large scale corruption”. He said Rajbir Ghuman had already disappeared from public view and it should be ensured that he as well as Nitin and Pritpal did not flee the country.
Mr Majithia also debunked the chief minister’s statement that he did not know Nitin and Pritpal, asserting that the duo along with former Punjab Cricket Association president Gulzarinder Singh Chahal had accompanied Bhagwant Mann in a chartered plane from Bangalore to Chandigarh.