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Bathinda land case: Punjab VB to quiz development authority officials over anomalies in bidding process
Officials claimed that during the probe it surfaced that only three individuals showed up in the bidding of phase 1 plots in the last couple of hours on September 27, the last day of e-auction.
Punjab Vigilance Bureau (VB) is set to tighten the noose around the officials of the Bathinda Development Authority (BDA) as it probes the e-auction of prime residential properties in September 2021. The land in question was marked as commercial on the web portal during the bidding process and was later bought by the former finance minister and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Manpreet Badal. Manpreet has already been questioned by VB in this matter on July 24.
The anti-corruption agency has also found that the BDA portal did not show the location or address of three plots in the Model Town Phase 1 of Bathinda City. Sources said it is being examined if the glaring anomalies led to financial loss to the public exchequer as only three bidders turned up for plots located in the city’s prime location.
VB officials remained tightlipped on the issue. The agency is probing the allegations of abuse of political position by Manpreet during the previous Congress government in Punjab to acquire a plot during this e-auction.
BDA additional chief administrator Lovejeet Kalsi said on Thursday that a probe is underway and she has no comment to offer on the issue.
Kalsi, however, visited the VB Bathinda zone office this morning. “It was a courtesy call to meet the SSP as I joined here recently. The visit was not related to the probe in the plot allotment case,” Kalsi said, who also holds the office of additional deputy commissioner (development).
Manpreet bought two plots measuring 1,560 sq yards and the groundbreaking ceremony of Manpreet’s house, in the eye of the storm, was done by then chief minister Charanjit Singh Channi in October 2021.
The former chief parliamentary secretary Sarup Chand Singla, who had quit the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) last year to become the Bathinda district president of the BJP, is the complainant in this case.
Ex-FM Manpreet had appeared before the VB on July 24 and termed the VB probe a political witch hunt at the behest of the chief minister Bhagwant Mann.
The five-time MLA had vehemently denied the charges of wrongdoings levelled by his party colleague Singla.
Officials familiar with the matter said an investigation is underway to find how three residential plots measuring 2,560 square yards, adjacent to the Doordarshan transmission tower, a key landmark in the city, were tagged ‘commercial’ during e-bidding.
VB to record BDA officials’ statements
They said VB is likely to grill BDA officials in the next few days to record their statement.
“VB officials have taken a few records in their custody and asked for more details. It was conveyed to BDA that in the investigation it was found plots that property on auction was ‘residential’ whereas during bidding, the property measuring two plots of 1,000 sq yards each and another of 560 yards were shown ‘commercial plots’. VB is finding how the category of plots was changed online and why e-auction was termed completed even when the location of Phase 1 plots was not shown on the portal,” said an official requesting anonymity.
Officials claimed that during the probe it surfaced that only three individuals showed up in the bidding of phase 1 plots in the last couple of hours on September 27, the last day of e-auction.
“Technical audit revealed that the three bids were made using a single electronic device as it was confirmed by the IP (internet protocol) address, a unique address that identifies a device on the internet or a local network. Investigators are digging deeper to see how the bidders used a common device for competitive bidding and did it lead to any loss to the state exchequer as there were no other bidders for properties in the prime location. The probe is also focusing to examine the bank details of various people involved in bidding and purchasing to find there was any further anomaly,” said another official familiar with the ongoing probe.
