CBI To Probe Punjab CM Office Graft Claims

The Punjab and Haryana High Court on Monday ordered a CBI probe into allegations of corruption involving Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann’s office and directed the agency to submit a status report within two months.

A bench of Chief Justice Ashwani Kumar Mishra and Justice Rohit Kapoor also directed Punjab Police and the state government to hand over all documents pertaining to the case to the CBI.

The order came on a petition filed by advocate Nikhil Saraf. The allegations include cash-for-transfers and payments to secure favourable government policies.

The petitioner submitted that no action had been taken despite communications from the Enforcement Directorate to the Punjab director general of police concerning allegations of corruption involving government officials.

In its letters, the ED said a network of private individuals was influencing government processes, including transfers and postings. It sought police action against those named in the communications.

The court was told that the allegations raised serious questions about the state government’s functioning and warranted an independent investigation.

Advocate Dheeraj Jain, who appeared for the ED along with Satyapal Jain, told reporters in Chandigarh that the court had described the matter as serious and said it should be properly investigated.

“The high court observed that the way Punjab police handled the matter is not satisfactory. It said the CBI will probe the case now. The CBI has been directed that within two months they will submit a status report of the investigation,” Jain said.

Responding to the order, Punjab BJP chief Dhillon said it had exposed the reality behind the state government’s claim of “zero-tolerance-for-corruption”.

Speaking at the party headquarters in Chandigarh, Dhillon demanded Mann’s immediate resignation, saying the government had lost the moral right to remain in power following the exposure of the alleged corruption network.

He also alleged that people in Punjab were being misled by boards proclaiming an “honest Chief Minister” across the state.