Jalandhar: Alleging that the Punjab Vigilance Bureau's lookout notice against former chief minister Charanjit Singh Channi by the Punjab Vigilance Bureau was aimed at demoralising the people, Leader of Opposition Pratap Bajwa said if the government claimed to be so transparent then it should issue a similar lookout notice against former minister Fauja Singh Sarari. Sarari resigned from Cabinet in January after his name came up for allegedly devising an extortion plan.
Earlier, Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann had announced in the Assembly on Monday that the government will arrest Channi and lodge an FIR against him. Responding to Bajwa, who sought a clarification on the amount of money collected from sand mining, Mann had accused Channi of being involved in alleged sand mining irregularities. Mann told that he would give a list of the mafias who are involved in it and had then named Channi.
Bajwa alleged that the lookout notice was issued keeping in mind the upcoming by-election to Jalandhar Lok Sabha seat. He claimed the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) would be defeated by a huge margin in Jalandhar. "As per my information, Mann will be removed from the chief minister's post before the 2024 Lok Sabha elections because he has hurt not only the leadership in Punjab but also Delhi," Bajwa said. The Opposition leader also alleged that speeches of the chief minister and treasury bench MLAs were given prominence while their statements were being ignored. "We will file a petition in the high court requesting that all the MLAs inside the House be covered or else the cameras should be shut down," he added.
Also Read: Govt must either reduce power tariff or subsidize electricity: Bajwa
Bajwa further demanded an investigation into the Punjab excise policy, which was prepared on the lines of Delhi. "We met the Governor and urged him to set up a judicial commission in this case and conduct an investigation into it," Bajwa said.
