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Jang-e-Azadi memorial probe: Barjinder Singh Hamdard submits fresh reply to VB
Barjinder Singh Hamdard, editor-in-chief of Ajit Group of newspapers, submitted a fresh reply to Punjab vigilance bureau (VB) regarding the probe into the alleged misuse of funds during the execution of ₹315-crore Jang-e-Azadi Memorial at Kartarpur in Jalandhar.
Barjinder Singh Hamdard, editor-in-chief of Ajit Group of newspapers, submitted a fresh reply to Punjab vigilance bureau (VB) regarding the probe into the alleged misuse of funds during the execution of ₹315-crore Jang-e-Azadi Memorial at Kartarpur in Jalandhar.
This is the second time that Hamdard had submitted a reply to a 17-point questionnaire sent to him by the probe agency. Earlier, the VB had found the reply filed by him on June 16 unsatisfactory, following which the VB had given Hamdard two weeks to file a fresh reply by July 3.
Hamdard remained instrumental in the conception and construction of the project since 2012 but quit as member secretary of the Jang-e-Azadi Memorial Foundation and as its managing committee president on April 10 after the VB kicked off the investigation into the whole matter.
Senior superintendent of police (VB) Jalandhar range, Rajeshwar Singh Sidhu said the reply received from Hamdard will be scrutinized and further clarifications will be asked for.
“After going through the responses to the 17 questions posed to him, we will further summon him, if required. However, most of his replies are still unsatisfactory. He has mentioned that he has asked for detailed records from the chief operating officer of the whole project,” the SSP said.
The questionnaire focused on the verification of source report regarding the Jang-e-Azadi Memorial project, the timeline of funds allocated to its foundation committee by respective governments, tendering process adopted, procurement of furniture and other equipment and infrastructure used in the project, the official said.
Based on complaints of alleged misuse of funds in the construction of the memorial, the Jalandhar VB initiated the probe in March. Besides confiscating official records from drawings to funds sanctioned by the state government from 2014-16, the VB has questioned the memorial’s managing committee secretary.
Spread over 25 acres at Kartarpur, the mega project was initiated by the Shiromani Akali Dal-BJP government.
It may be mentioned that the Ajit Group editor had moved the Punjab and Haryana high court after VB’s May 29 summon, demanding that the probe be handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). On June 1, the high court directed the VB to send a questionnaire to Hamdard in writing and not to summon him.
Leaders of opposition parties, including the Congress, Shiromani Akali Dal, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and SAD (Sanyukt) had met in Jalandhar on June 2 as a mark of solidarity towards Hamdard.
