Chandigarh (Punjab) [India], October 5 : BJP leader Ravneet Singh Bittu on Monday called Punjab Chief Minister "Beimaan Maan", after the Punjab and Haryana High Court directed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to probe corruption allegations involving Mann's Officer on Special Duty (OSD) Rajbir Singh Ghuman, claiming that the development had exposed the functioning of the Punjab CMO.
“It took five years for them to be completely exposed. Bhagwant Mann is not ‘Mann Sa'ab’ anymore. He will now be known as ‘Beimaan Mann’. This had never happened before; this is happening in Punjab CMO for the first time,” Bittu said in a self-made video.
Bittu said the matter should not be viewed merely as allegations against the Chief Minister's OSD, but as an issue concerning the reputation of the Chief Minister's Office.
“This is not about Bhagwant Mann's OSD. This is about the reputation of the CM house and office. I want to congratulate the lawyer who went to the High Court and presented 200 pages to the ED,” he said.
The remarks came after the Punjab and Haryana High Court ordered a CBI investigation into corruption allegations involving Ghuman and other individuals. The court also directed the central probe agency to submit its findings within two months.
The order followed a Public Interest Litigation filed by advocate Nikhil Saraf, who sought an independent investigation into allegations raised by the Enforcement Directorate (ED).
According to the allegations cited in the matter, certain individuals were allegedly involved in corrupt practices and improperly influenced official transfers and postings as well as government procurement contracts.
Earlier on Monday, BJP leader Sambit Patra also targeted the Aam Aadmi Party government in Punjab following the High Court's order.
“The Bharatiya Janata Party has maintained all along that in Punjab, whether it is the law and order situation or corruption, everything has reached a breaking point; the law and order has crumbled, and corruption is at an all-time high. Today, what we have been saying has been confirmed by the High Court itself,” Patra said.
Patra demanded an explanation from AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal, the party leadership and Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann over the alleged scale of the matter and the involvement of officials.
“I feel Arvind Kejriwal ji, the Aam Aadmi Party, and Bhagwant Mann ji should give a clarification on this regarding how massive this scam actually is, how deeply their own secretaries are involved in it, and how their own secretaries are engaging in such corruption and scams,” he added.