Punjab

Vigilance and irrigation department face-to-face over a bribery case

Chandigarh: The vigilance and irrigation departments are in loggerheads with each other over bribery case against a woman officer of Punjab’s irrigation department who was caught red-handed while taking a bribe. 
The Irrigation Department has rejected the claims of the Vigilance Bureau and accused that woman officer was being implicated in a false and fabricated case. 
     The Punjab Vigilance Bureau had claimed to have caught a woman officer, Simarjit Kaur Dhillon, red-handed while accepting bribe, accusing her of colluding with the mining mafia during captain Amarinder Singh’s regime. 
On the contrary, the irrigation department claimed that the woman officer was tightening the noose against those involved in illegal mining.
    Principal Secretary Irrigation Krishan Kumar has written a two-page letter to the Vigilance on May 12, denying sanction for prosecution citing facts. On May 5, 2021, the Punjab Vigilance Bureau had registered a case under sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act and claimed that District Mining Officer Simarjit Kaur Dhillon, Clerk Amanpreet Singh and Mining Guard Pal Singh were caught red-handed while accepting bribe. 
    According to the vigilance claim, the said officers and employees of the mining department were caught red-handed while accepting bribe as a monthly share from the stone crusher owners. 
   The VB had also claimed that Amanpreet Singh and Pal Singh used to collect the bribe amount and give it to Simarjit Kaur Dhillon. 
According to vigilance officials, the bureau had submitted the challan against Amanpreet Singh and Pal Singh in the court on December 21, 2021.