Vigilance Bureau books Punjab's ex-finance minister Manpreet Badal, five others in land buying case

The Punjab Vigilance Bureau has registered a case against former state finance minister Manpreet Singh Badal and five others in connection with alleged irregularities in the purchase of a property in Bathinda, a top official said on Monday. Apart from Badal, who is now a BJP leader, and former Bathinda municipal corporation commissioner Bikramjit Shergill, the other four booked in the case on Sunday night have been identified as Rajiv Kumar, Amandeep Singh, Vikas Arora and Pankaj, the official said. Rajiv Kumar and Amandeep Singh have been arrested, the officer added. The bureau had launched an investigation into the matter based on former MLA Sarup Chand Singla’s 2021 complaint alleging irregularities in the purchase of the property at a prime location in Bathinda. BJP leader Singla, who was earlier with the Shiromani Akali Dal, had alleged that Badal, as a minister in the previous Congress dispensation, had abused his position to convert commercial plots into residential plots for himself. The case was registered under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code, including sections 420 (cheating) and 468 (forgery) and also under the Prevention of Corruption Act. During the investigation, the Vigilance Bureau had interrogated Badal in July. A few days ago, Badal had filed a pre-arrest bail application in a court in Bathinda and the matter is listed for hearing on September 26. Badal had joined the BJP after quitting the Congress in January this year.