Industrial plot transfer case: VB questions ex-minister Arora, take him to site

Punjab vigilance bureau took ex-minister Sunder Sham Arora to the plot in Phase 9, Industrial area, in the case of an alleged illegal transfer of an industrial plot, under Punjab Small Industries Export Corporation (PSIEC), to a real estate company and allowing it to establish a township

Punjab vigilance bureau took ex-minister Sunder Sham Arora to the plot in Phase 9, Industrial area, in the case of an alleged illegal transfer of an industrial plot, under Punjab Small Industries Export Corporation (PSIEC), to a real estate company and allowing it to establish a township.

Ex-minister Sunder Sham Arora was was questioned about the plot, area and boundaries and how many separate people the plot was sold.

Arora, who is already in judicial custody in the disproportionate assets case, was on Thursday brought on a production warrant from Ropar jail and was arrested. Vigilance produced Arora in the court on Friday, which remanded him to 14 days of judicial custody.

Sources in vigilance said that the former minister was questioned about the plot, area and boundaries and how many separate people the plot was sold. Arora was also questioned about the transferring and bifurcation of the plot by the realtor company. It allowed the realtor company to establish a township by cutting plots, and the role of SP Singh and the IAS officer in the scam.

He has been arrested under sections 13 (1) (a), 13 (2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act and 409, 420, 465, 467, 468, 471, 120-B, of the IPC.

In this case, the VB has arrested seven officials of PSIEC which included Ankur Chaudhary, Estate Officer, Davinderpal Singh, GM (Personnel), JS Bhatia, chief general manager (planning), Ashima Aggarwal, ATP (Planning), Parminder Singh, Executive Engineer, Rajat Kumar DA and Sandeep Singh, SDE for conniving with each other to provide undue benefit to the realtor firm. Thereafter, PSIEC former executive director Surinderpal Singh (SP Singh) was arrested from the cremation ground in Mohali when he was attending his father’s funeral.

The spokesperson of the state VB said aiming to promote the industry, the Punjab government had allotted 25 acres of land to Anand Lamps Limited through a sale deed in the year 1987, which was later transferred to a firm named Signify Innovations. This plot was then sold to Gulmohar Township through a sale deed by Signify Innovations after procuring a no-objection certificate from the Punjab Small Industries Export Corporation (PSIEC).

Vigilance found during the probe that if this plot was to be sold as per the instructions or rules of the state government, the government would have got an income of ₹600 to 700 crores. At the time of the sale of 125 plots by Gulmohar Township, no proposal report, project report, articles of association or memorandum of association was demanded from any buyer party and sold all the plots illegally.

Arora was arrested on October 16 and was lodged in Ropar Jail in a bribery case. Vigilance bureau had allegedly caught Arora red-handed from Zirakpur and recovered ₹50 lakh, which he had allegedly brought as a bribe to Manmohan Kumar, assistant inspector general, VB, flying squad, Punjab, to settle a graft case.