Patiala
Amid much-hyped crusade against corruption, the Punjab government is yet to grant the mandatory sanction to prosecute former ministers and officials who are under the vigilance bureau (VB) scanner, officials familiar with the matter said.
Under Sections 17A and 19 of the Prevention of Corruption Act, approval is needed from the state government for prosecuting or conducting an inquiry against a serving or retired public servants and politicians.
The VB is waiting to get nod to prosecute more than 100 persons, said officials, adding that according to the latest ruling of the Supreme Court, the government has to take a decision on granting prosecution sanction under Section 17A of the PC Act within three months of the receipt of request from the VB. It can take a month more, if some clarification is needed. However, the entire process must be completed in four months, the apex court ruling said.
The list of officials and politicians against whom VB has sought prosecution sanction include former food and supplies minister Bharat Bhushan Ashu, former Amritsar Improvement Trust chairman Dinesh Bassi, IAS officer Sanjay Popli, former IAS officers GK Singh and SS Bains, PCS officers Narinder Singh Dhaliwal, TK Goel and Anita Darshi, IFS officer Vishal Chauhan, among others.
When contacted, a VB spokesperson said sanction against mining officer Simarpreet Kaur Dhillon and 17 officials of the excise and taxation department are pending for the past three years. The spokesperson said that the bureau is repeatedly taking up the delay with the government, but to no avail. The delay in granting prosecution sanction is hitting the probe, he added.
Though the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government has launched a crusade against corruption, officials are sitting on the files, said a VB official, not wishing to be named.
A total of 44 permissions are pending under Section 17A of Prevention of Corruption Act, while 63 sanctions are awaited under Section 19 of the Act, said officials familiar with the matter.
Section 17A of the PC Act makes it mandatory for officials concerned to pass appropriate orders within three months. But in many cases, there has been extraordinary delay, said people privy to the development.
Punjab chief secretary Vijay Kumar Janjua has held several rounds of meetings regarding the delay in granting prosecution sanction with officials concerned, but no avail.
“The chief secretary has clearly told administrative secretaries that the mandate of the government is clear: Not to spare anyone indulging in corruption. The government even passed strict instructions, but some secretaries are delaying the process,” said an official of the personnel department.
The VB has also shot off several reminders to secretary, vigilance department, to expedite the process to take the cases to their logical end, said a bureau official.
Chahal asked to join probe on April 6
The VB has pasted a notice outside the house and marriage palace owned by Bharat Inder Singh Chahal, former adviser to ex-chief minister Capt Amarinder Singh, to join the probe. He is facing the probe for allegedly having assets disproportionate to his known sources of income. Chahal, who is allegedly avoiding the VB probe, has been asked to appear before the bureau on April 6.
