Cong leader Bajwa writes to Punjab governor over 'sexual misconduct' charge against minister

In his letter to Purohit, Bajwa wrote that the matter pertaining to Kataruchak, a minister in the Bhagwant Mann-led Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government, "has become the talk of the street and a cause for shame to the constitutional office continued to be held by the minister even after scientific confirmation of the authenticity of the video at your (governor's) level".

Chandigarh: Congress leader Partap Singh Bajwa wrote to Punjab Governor Banwarilal Purohit on Friday, urging him to forward the matter pertaining to minister Lal Chand Kataruchak, who is facing charges of "sexual misconduct", to the chief justice of the high court to treat it as a suo-motu writ petition.

"To do justice in the case of minister Lal Chand Kataruchak, I urge the Hon'ble Governor of Punjab to forward the matter to the Hon'ble Chief Justice of Punjab and Haryana High Court to treat it as a suo motu writ petition and hand it over to the CBI for a fair investigation," Bajwa, the leader of opposition in the Punjab Assembly, said in a tweet.

He claimed that "even after the scientific confirmation of the authenticity of the video at the Hon'ble Governor's level, CM@BhagwantMann is dragging his feet and taking no action against the tainted minister". In his letter to Purohit, Bajwa wrote that the matter pertaining to Kataruchak, a minister in the Bhagwant Mann-led Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government, "has become the talk of the street and a cause for shame to the constitutional office continued to be held by the minister even after scientific confirmation of the authenticity of the video at your (governor's) level".

Referring to the Punjab Police forming a three-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) to look into the "sexual misconduct" charge against the minister, Bajwa wrote it is "apparently to drag the action against the minister". "Therefore, as Leader of Opposition in the Vidhan Sabha, I request your good self to forward this matter to the Hon'ble Chief Justice of Punjab and Haryana High Court to treat this case as a suo-motu writ petition for a judicial appraisal of the facts and handing over the same to the Central Bureau of Investigation so that a fair investigation is carried out in the interest of high probity expected from the representatives of the people," the Congress leader wrote in his letter to the governor.

On Thursday, the governor asked Chief Minister Mann to take action against Kataruchak. Alleging that the minister has committed a "heinous crime", the governor said he does not have any right to stay in the cabinet. Earlier, the National Commission for Scheduled Castes (NCSC) had issued a notice to the Punjab government, following a complaint of "sexual misconduct" from a Gurdaspur-based male victim against Kataruchak.

The Punjab Police had formed the SIT subsequently. "Do not forget it, it is a heinous crime, which was committed by him (Kataruchak). He does not have the right to stay (in the cabinet)," the governor had told reporters here. The AAP government is facing flak over the issue with the opposition parties demanding action against Kataruchak.

After taking cognisance of the victim's complaint, the NCSC issued the notice to the Punjab government last month and asked the chief secretary and the director general of police to investigate the matter and submit an action-taken report. The minister had allegedly approached the victim "by sending him a friend request on Facebook in 2013-14 and when he accepted it, Kataruchak allegedly started making advances", the NCSC had said, quoting from the victim's complaint.

"Since he was an influential person, he had promised me a government job due to which I remained mum. I was too young at that time to understand anything. But his sexual excesses continued till 2021. However, he met me for the last time on Diwali in 2021 and he neither provided me with a job, nor met me after that," the victim had claimed. Congress MLA Sukhpal Singh Khaira had handed over "highly objectionable video clips of gross misconduct" of an AAP minister to the governor for a forensic examination. However, he had not named the minister. Purohit had then forwarded the forensic report of Kataruchak's "objectionable" video to Mann. According to a report, the video was not morphed.