The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

Sunday, June 16, 2002, Chandigarh, India

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Tota amassed assets worth 17 cr
Former minister sent to police custody
Tribune Reporters

Kharar, June 15
The Punjab Vigilance Department today stated that former Education Minister Tota Singh, during his tenure in the previous Akali government, amassed property worth over Rs 17 crore. The assets were in the form of agricultural land, a sheller, a godown, shares in benami properties and at least 25 private buses.

The ill-gotten money was allegedly sent abroad through hawala channels, said the public prosecutor while appearing in the court of the local Judicial Magistrate, Mr Roshan Lal Chouhan, here today. The public prosecutor, while pleading the case of the state, said there were allegations against the minister for appointing 136 clerks in the Punjab School Education Board in violation of the rules and regulations. An official telephone connection and car of the board was also used by the minister. It has also been alleged that the former minister, who is also the sitting MLA from Moga, took commission for accepting substandard paper for printing books and answersheets of the board.

The public prosecutor said the former minister had purchased valuable properties in Punjab and had stakes abroad. The minister was running 25 buses in the name of his kith and kin. It was also alleged that the minister took bribes for appointing ETT and science teachers . The minister had shares in a technical college of Badnipur and SAS Nagar. The Vigilance Department claimed that the former minister connived with the Chairman of the Punjab School Education Board while appointing a regular OSD to the Chairman and an advocate on contract.

During the argument before the Duty Magistrate, the defence counsel claimed that all appointments of clerks, ETT teachers and science teachers had been made by the Chairman of the education board and the Education Minister had no role to play in these. He stated that no statement of any official of the education board had been recorded by the Vigilance Department to establish the allegations against the former minister.

The public prosecutor said the Vigilance Department had registered a case under the Prevention of Corruption Act and Sections 420, 467, 468, 471 and 120 of the IPC against the former minister and 14 days police remand was sought to ascertain information about the various cases.

The Duty Magistrate remanded the former minister in police custody till June 20.

The Vigilance Department was directed to get the former minister medically examined and to allow his counsel to be present during the interrogation. The defence counsel was also allowed by the court to meet the MLA for an hour in a day.

Raids at houses of Tota Singh’s kin
Kulwinder Sandhu
Tribune News Service

Moga, June 15
The Vigilance Bureau, with the help of the local police, today raided several places in Nihal Singh Wala, Badhni Kalan and here looking for close associates and members of the family of former Education Minister and MLA Tota Singh.

The former minister was picked up from the premises of the local sub-jail last afternoon following registration of a criminal case against him at Mohali under Sections 467, 468, 471 and 120 (B) of the IPC and the Prevention of Corruption Act for amassing assets disproportionate to his known sources of income.

A special team of the bureau, divided into three groups raided the residences of the former minister at Nihal Singh Wala and here early this morning in hunt for his son Makhan Singh and brother Sukhdev Singh but could not succeed. The police has been deployed outside his residences and a rice mill at Moga and Nihal Singh Wala. Nobody is allowed to enter or come out of these buildings.

Sources close to the former minister revealed that both his brother and son were not in the country. They had gone to Canada since the formation of the new government.

The Bureau along with the police reportedly raided the house of Mr Harinder Singh Rania, close associate of Mr Tota Singh and chairman of the Market Committee, Badhni Kalan. He was said to have been collecting money for Tota Singh. He had reportedly fled to an undisclosed place since last evening on hearing the news of Tota Singh’s arrest.

However, when contacted on his cellphone he denied the rumours of vigilance raids at his residence and said he had nothing to do with the arrest of the former minister.

The bureau is also said to have raided the residence of Dr Gurmail Singh, Personal Assistant to the former minister, but could not trap him. Securitymen have been deployed outside their residences.

Kehar Singh's house raided
Tribune News Service

Patiala, June 15
The house of Mr Kehar Singh, Chairman, Punjab School Education Board, in Urban Estate Phase-I here was raided by a Vigilance team from Chandigarh tonight in connection with a case registered against Mr Tota Singh. The case pertains to a multi-crore scam in the purchase of paper to prepare answer sheets. Mr Kehar Singh is at present in Mexico on a personal visit. The Vigilance Bureau also raided houses of three relatives of former minister Sucha Singh Langah here today.