Nabha, November 2, 2020 (Yes Punjab News)
Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) President Sukhbir Singh Badal today said once the SAD formed a government in the State it would order a probe into the SC scholarship scam engineered by SC Welfare minister Sadhu Singh Dharamsot and put him behind bars within three months.
The SAD President also led a march to Dharamsot’s residence here and staged a dharna near it when stopped by a large police force.
Addressing a huge rally to protest against the injustice done to Dalit students by Sadhu Singh Dharamsot and demanding he be sacked, arrested and jailed for the embezzlement of Rs 64 crore from the SC scholarship scheme, the SAD President asked chief minister Capt Amarinder Singh to disclose why he was shielding the corrupt minister. “Punjabis want to know why you have given a clean chit to a minister who has destroyed the future of lakhs of Dalit students”.
Mr Sukhbir Badal said it appeared that the Congress high command and Rahul Gandhi had also been compromised by the scamsters. He said Dharamsot’s co-conspirator and Welfare department Director turned Congress legislator Balwinder Singh Dhaliwal was successful in securing a Congress ticket for himself immediately after taking premature retirement last year after bypassing other contenders from Phagwara.
Stating that the scope of the scam was enormous, Mr Badal said while money had been released to institutions which were not eligible, as much as Rs 16 crore was given to institutions which had been directed to pay Rs 8 crore back to the government.
He said Dharamsot was responsible for the entire fraud as he had directed department officials that all files relating to disbursement of funds should be put up before him.
Asserting that Punjab was going through its worst time ever under the leadership of chief minister Capt Amarinder Singh, Mr Badal said “Congress legislators have been given a free hand to loot the State exchequer. “Cong MLAs are running the liquor, sand and drug mafias even the as the chief minister is oblivious to the situation and remains cut off from the people”.
Speaking on the occasion, former minister Bikram Singh Majithia said instead of trying to befool Punjabis with new promises, the Congress government should tell why it kept budgetary provisions of Rs 2,440 crore for the SC scholarship scam in the last three years but did not release even one paisa for the same.
He said a CBI probe was needed to ascertain the real scope of the SC scholarship scam as the Punjab government had brought down its ambit to a mere Rs seven crore by saying this amount had been given wrongfully to private institutions.
“The truth is that the scope of the scam is much more than the Rs 64 crore unearthed by Additional chief secretary Kripa Shankar Saroj as the scam has been going on since several years”, Mr Majithia added.
Mr Majithia said it was strange that Rahul Gandhi, who liked to visit States to indulge in photo-optics as he had done in the case of Punjab also by sitting on a sofa on a tractor, did not deem it fit to visit Dalit students who had been robbed by his minister.
He said Dharamsot was indulging in rampant corruption and had even indulged in corrupt practices while purchasing land in Nurpur Bedi. “Dharamsot should be made for pay for his crimes by being lodged in the new jail in Nabha”, Mr Majithia added.
Senior leader Prof Prem Singh Chandumajra while speaking on the occasion demanded the immediate sack and arrest of Dharamsot and said the chief minister should not protect someone who had destroyed the future of lakhs of Dalit students.
Others who spoke on the occasion included Charanjit Singh Atwal, Gulzar Singh Ranike, Surjit Singh Rakhra, Kabir Das, Hira Singh Gabria, N K Sharma, Pawan Tinu, Harpeet Kaur Mukhmailpur, Baldev Singh Mann, Parkash Chand Garg, Parkash Singh Bhatti,Harindepal Singh Chandumajra, Bibi Varinder Kuar Lumba,Darbara Singh Guru, Gaganjit Singh Barnala ,Iqbal Singh Jhundan, Gaganjit Barnala, Hari Singh, Darshan Singh Shiwalik, Gurpreet Singh Rajukhanna, Vinay Danav Harpreet Singh. and Harpal Juneja.
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