Amritsar, March 7
The state government would seek a CBI inquiry into the alleged excesses by the ‘Kairon family’ (relatives of Mr Parkash Singh Badal, a former Chief Minister) during the five-year term of the Badal government.

Senior Congress leader and Punjab Irrigation Minister, Gurchet Singh Bhullar alleged that the Kairon family was involved in several criminal cases, including that of shielding drug smugglers, he said he would ensure that Mr Surinder Singh Kairon, a former Congress member of Parliament and his (Mr Kairon’s) close relatives were behind the bars after the completion of high-level probe being ordered by the state government.

Mr Bhullar said that the Congress government would also initiate strict action against the erring police officials involved in saving the brother of Mr Adesh Partap Singh Kairon (son-in-law of Mr Badal), former Excise and Taxation Minister, Punjab who allegedly had opened fire in front of Bhikhiwind police station on February 7 (a few days before the Assembly elections) in which one migrant labourer was killed on the spot instead of arresting the alleged culprits, the SHO helped the culprits to escape from the rear window of the police station. Not only this, the police registered a fabricated case against the complainant, Mr Tejpreet Singh, a senior Congress leader. He said he had learnt that under pressure from the ‘Kairon family’, the investigating officer had reported that the earlier FIR registered against Gurpartap Singh Kairon, brother of Mr Adesh Partap Singh Kairon, be quashed. However, when contacted Mr Amrik Singh, SP, Tarn Taran said that he had yet to file his report. He said one of the two FIRs relating to the same incident (the Bhikhiwind incident in which one person was killed) could stand scrutiny in the court.

Mr Gurchet Singh Bhullar alleged that the ‘Kairon family’ was also responsible for registration of a number of ‘false’ cases against Mr Tarlok Singh Chakwala, a Congress candidate from Patti and Mr Peter.