Chandigarh: The problems of Gurinder Singh alias Bhapa, a contractor named by the Punjab Vigilance Bureau in the irrigation scam, have increased. On the request of the Enforcement Directorate (ED), the court has canceled the anticipatory bail of the contractor. The ED had obtained the non-bailable warrant (NBW) of Gurinder Singh from the court on May 5.
ED sources said the developer, named in the irrigation scam, was not cooperating in the investigation, so action has been initiated for custodial interrogation. Though the ED had initiated its probe into the irrigation scam in 2018, properties worth over Rs 41 crore of the contractor were attached in March 2022.
According to sources, the ED, after going through the vigilance documents, has revealed that the value of the properties of the contractor is more than Rs 70 crore. Therefore, interrogation is necessary to take the investigation forward.
The Punjab Vigilance Bureau registered a case of corruption and cheating against Gurinder Singh Contractor and others in the year 2017 in this case Gulshan Nagpal, Executive engineer Paramjit Singh Ghuman, Chief Engineer (Retired), Bajrang Lal Singla, Exion, Harwinder Singh, Chief Engineer (Retired), Kaminder Singh Deol, SDO (Retired), Gurdev Singh, Chief Engineer (Retired), Gurdev Singh, Chief Engineer (Retired), Gurdev Singh, Chief Engineer (Retired) were also nominated.
The vigilance is also questioning three retired IAS officers of the state and two political leaders who were irrigation minister during the SAD-BJP government in connection with the case.
The VB, in its investigation, had claimed that during the SAD-BJP regime, the irrigation department was so kind to Gurinder Singh that he was allotted tenders worth about Rs 1,000 crore which were awarded at 10-50 per cent higher rates than the departmental rates.
At the time of such allotment, the conditions were made in such a way that the bidding contractor could be benefited and other contractors could not stand in this competition. As per the Centre’s directives, it was necessary to make payments as per CSR rates at the time of utilisation of disaster management funds, but contracts were allotted at rates higher than csr rates to benefit contractor Gurinder Singh, causing huge financial loss to the state exchequer.
Apart from this, a few days before the election code of conduct came into force in January 2017, some conditions of the tenders were abolished and two major construction works were allotted to Gurinder Singh Contractor under the agreement. The ED had attached assets worth Rs 30 crore of Surinder Singh Pehalwan, a former engineer of the Punjab Mandi Board, in the last few days. The Vigilance had registered a case of corruption and income disproportionate to his known sources against Surinder Singh Pehalwan.
During the SAD-BJP government, Bhalwan was posted to the different posts by flouting rules. He was an engineer with the Punjab Mandi Board and was simultaneously posted at important places in GMADA and other establishments.
It was during the time of Surinder Singh that works worth billions of rupees were carried out by GMADA and various irregularities were also claimed by the Vigilance in these works. Major works carried out in Mohali district were supervised by Surinder Singh Pehalwan.