Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (PPCC) on Tuesday accused Punjab Chief Minister of being a hypocrite, who lecture the people on moral values and live with his own moral shortcomings as far as his conduct in shielding his corrupt Cabinet colleagues is concerned.
“Badals’ actions speak louder than his words,” stated PPCC vice-presidents Charanjit Singh Channi, Tarlochan Singh Soond, Gurpreet Singh Kangar and OP Soni in a joint statement.
They asked the Chief Minister to overcome his moral shortcomings and act against the corrupt Ministers. “Badal is turning a deaf ear to corruption charges against his Ministerial colleagues in scams notably the illegal mining, embezzlement in Border Area Development fund and Sarva Siksha Abhiyan funds,” it stated.
Congress leaders said that attitude of Chief Minister towards allegations of corruption against Revenue Minister Bikram Singh Majithia, Animal Husbandry Minister Gulzar Singh Ranike and Education Minister Sikandar Singh Maluka have proved that he and his Cabinet colleagues are cut from the same cloth.
They made it clear that the Congress would continue its crusade against the corrupt Education Minister.
PPCC vice-presidents said that inquiry into the book scam ordered by Chief Minister was a “travesty of justice”.
“The reputation of Justice (retd) AK Jindal, a retired judge of Punjab and Haryana High Court who is appointed inquiry office, is mired by controversies and he is also considered close to Badal,” they added, demanding an inquiry by the CBI or by a sitting judge of the Punjab and Haryana High Court.
“In Ranike’s case, his PA was made scapegoat and Minister was given the clean chit and officials of Education Department who acted at the behest of Maluka are placed under suspension and ground is being prepared to give clean chit to the Minister,” they pointed.
PPCC vice-presidents said that the involvement of Education Minister in the books scam “is not only for monitory benefits but it also amounts to an immoral act as he tried to grab the Central funds meant for poor
school children. He is also responsible for supply of books containing vulgar and derogatory content”.
Accused Badal of adopting double standards in holding democratic values, they said, “On the one hand, he boasts to be champion of democracy and on the hand he will not allow free and fair Panchayati Raj elections.”
They also questioned the conduct of Chief Minister in inviting elected members of block samiti and zila parishad only affiliated with SAD-BJP for function to welcome them held on Tuesday in Kisan Bhawan in Chandigarh.