Monday,
June 17, 2002, Chandigarh, India
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Sleuths find nests empty
Education board chief flies out; others hiding
Tribune News Service
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More allegations WHILE a former Education Minister of Punjab, Tota Singh, is in the vigilance net over “unfair” selection of teachers, two persons — Mr Parlad Singh and Mr Gurjeet Singh — in a complaint to the Punjab Lokpal here today, have said that they were not given the posts of history lecturer in schools, in spite of being second and third, respectively, on the merit list. The candidates had given interviews for the job to the Mandal Education Officer at Jalandhar on November 2001. They said candidates much below them in ranking had been appointed. |
SAS Nagar, June 16
Following raids by the Vigilance Bureau at the Patiala house of the Chairman of the Punjab School Education Board, some officials of the board have, reportedly, gone underground. While the board Chairman is out of the country, the other officials were here till yesterday. Persons close to them said they would try to evade arrest. The Vigilance Bureau is looking for an official of the board guest house, who was close to the son of a former education minister of Punjab, Tota Singh. Some officials of the printing section of the board, personal staff of the Chairman and the Vice-Chairman and an official of the vehicles section are wanted by the vigilance men. Anonymous sources said the investigating agency had visited the Phase 3B1 house of the Chairman here and the house of the Vice-Chairman as well. The Vice-Chairman was not home. It has been learnt that cases could be registered against 10 to 12 officials of the board for financial and administrative irregularities during the tenure of the previous government in the state. The investigating agency had found the recruitment of 136 clerks to be unfair. The original answer-sheets of 60 candidates who had reappeared in examinations and some other related records had been burnt to destroy the evidence. These had been replaced with new answer-sheets, showing the candidates to have scored good marks. Meanwhile, vigilance officials, reportedly, picked up J.P. Singla, an official of the Education Department, from Nabha late yesterday. According to unconfirmed reports, some close associates of the former education minister have also been rounded up. A vigilance official said more officials of the board would be charged with various offences. The bureau is expected to raid the houses of the other officials of the board as well.
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