Politics
Punjab: CM Mann Sacks Health Minister Vijay Singla Over Corruption Charges, Says He Was Demanding 1% Kickback In All Department Tenders
Swarajya Staff
May 24, 2022, 01:41 PM | Updated 02:48 PM IST
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Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann has sacked Health Minister Vijay Singla from his cabinet on corruption charges.
Mann said he took the decision after learning that the minister was allegedly demanding one percent commission for all tenders floated by Health and Family Welfare department.
Mann claimed that the the decision was taken to ensure that his government remains free of corrupt practices.
Police have been directed to register a case against him.
“I am taking strict action against the minister. I am removing him from the cabinet,” the chief minister said in a video message. Mann further claimed that Singla had admitted to wrongdoings.
Singla was elected from Mansa constituency in recently concluded state assembly elections. He trounced Congress candidate and popular Punjabi singer Shubhdeep Singh Sidhu aka Sidhu Moosewala by a margin of 63,323 votes.
A practising dental surgeon, Singla, who joined AAP in 2016, is the party’s trade wing’s state vice president.
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