B A T H I N D A    E D I T I O N

Malout MLA to resign from post of planning board chief 
Muktsar, August 28
MLA Malout Harpreet Singh, whose wife Abneet Kaur was unanimously elected as the chairperson of Muktsar Zila Parishad on Thursday, is resigning tomorrow from the post of Chairman, District Planning Board. Confirming this late this evening, Harpreet Singh said, "I am resigning tomorrow from the post of Chairman, District Planning Board." Though he did not say who will replace him, Harpret Singh said that a former constituency in-charge of SAD is likely to be appointed in his place.

Congress protests against flood situation in Fazilka
Fazilka, August 28
Congress workers of Fazilka area staged a protest and blocked the Fazilka-Abohar national highway for three hours against the state government for its failure to check the floods in Fazilka district. While lashing out at the state government, former Congress MLA Mohinder Kumar Rinwa said the administration earlier failed to carry out the cleanliness of the drains as a result of which they overflowed and inundated the standing crops, particularly in the villages falling at the tail end of these drains.

Nine years on, govt takes action against official in bribery case
Faridkot, August 28
About nine years after a resident of Kotkapura in Faridkot district filed a complaint with Punjab Chief Minister and Governor for taking necessary action against a senior officer for accepting bribe to decide mutation cases, the state government has now decided to reduce the salary of the officer to a lower stage for two years following the recommendation of the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC).

5 arrested for farmer’s murder
Abohar, August 28
With the arrest of all five persons allegedly involved in killing Gursahib Singh, a small farmer of village Wahabwala recently, the police here claimed to have solved the case that had shocked many.

Two drug peddlers nabbed
Muktsar, August 28
The district police claimed to have nabbed two drug peddlers and seized 160 tranquiliser cough syrups besides1,750 sedative tablets from their possession on the Lambi road in Gidderbaha yesterday.

Youth killed in road accident
Fazilka, August 28
A youth, Raj Kumar (20), a resident of Basti Odanwali locality here was killed in a road accident on the border road in the afternoon. According to sources, Raj Kumar, a BCA student of Lovely Professional University, Jalandhar, was going on foot to bring green fodder. 

Malout MLA to resign from post of planning board chief 
Tribune News Service

Muktsar, August 28
MLA Malout Harpreet Singh, whose wife Abneet Kaur was unanimously elected as the chairperson of Muktsar Zila Parishad on Thursday, is resigning tomorrow from the post of Chairman, District Planning Board. Confirming this late this evening, Harpreet Singh said, "I am resigning tomorrow from the post of Chairman, District Planning Board." Though he did not say who will replace him, Harpret Singh said that a former constituency in-charge of SAD is likely to be appointed in his place.

It may be mentioned here that since the wife of the MLA had got an important position in the district leadership, he was expected to resign from the post. 

Congress protests against flood situation in Fazilka 

Fazilka, August 28
Congress workers of Fazilka area staged a protest and blocked the Fazilka-Abohar national highway for three hours against the state government for its failure to check the floods in Fazilka district. While lashing out at the state government, former Congress MLA Mohinder Kumar Rinwa said the administration earlier failed to carry out the cleanliness of the drains as a result of which they overflowed and inundated the standing crops, particularly in the villages falling at the tail end of these drains.

He described Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal’s statement criticising the Central Government for creating hindrances in granting suitable compensation to the flood victims as uncalled for. He sought immediate compensation to the flood affected villagers. —OC

Nine years on, govt takes action against official in bribery case
Tribune News Service

Faridkot, August 28
About nine years after a resident of Kotkapura in Faridkot district filed a complaint with Punjab Chief Minister and Governor for taking necessary action against a senior officer for accepting bribe to decide mutation cases, the state government has now decided to reduce the salary of the officer to a lower stage for two years following the recommendation of the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC).

A probe was ordered into corruption charges against the then Faridkot Division Commissioner B. Sarkar after Harpartap Singh of Kotkapura made a complaint to he CM and the Punjab Governor in October 2004. An inquiry took place into the charges by the Financial Commissioner, Revenue, and on the basis of this inquiry, the Punjab Government recommended action against the officer to the Union Government, revealed the records possessed by the complainant in the case.

The complainant, Harpartap Singh Sandhu, had alleged that the commissioner had taken a bribe of Rs 55,000 through his reader Paramjit Singh in a case pertaining to the mutation of a piece of land, but he reportedly took more money from his rivals and declared the verdict in their favour.

He had charged the Commissioner with changing his own verdict. According to him, his wife Nirmal Kaur had filed an appeal in the court of B. Sarkar, in which she had stated that the mutation of her father's property after his death was done in the name of his natural heir by the Assistant Collector of Jaito. But later, the Collector of Faridkot mutated the property in the name of Mahinder Singh’s only son on the basis of an unregistered will.

Harpartap Singh alleged that after the appeal was filed in his court, the commissioner approached him through his reader Paramjit Singh and demanded Rs 55,000 for a verdict in his favour. He alleged that he had paid him bribe after withdrawing the amount from his bank account No. 01190013321 in the State Bank of India in the presence of some witnesses but the commissioner gave the verdict in favour of the opposite party by taking more money from them.

He alleged that when he asked the commissioner to return his money, he was threatened. It was not the only case in which B. Sarkar was in the dock for his adjudication of cases as the commissioner of Faridkot division. In the Balbir Singh versus Jugraj Singh case, the commissioner changed his own order after about seven months, saying the earlier order of October 22, 2003 was typed inadvertently and a corrigendum was issued on May 12, 2004 while reversing the earlier decision, alleged Harpartap in his complaint to the Punjab CM and Governor.

It is the first of its type case in Punjab where disciplinary action has been taken against an officer of the rank of commissioner. 

5 arrested for farmer’s murder
Raj Sadosh

Abohar, August 28
With the arrest of all five persons allegedly involved in killing Gursahib Singh, a small farmer of village Wahabwala recently, the police here claimed to have solved the case that had shocked many.

DSP (Balluana) Veer Chand said at a press briefing today that the victim’s beheaded body was found on the sandy stretch along Rampura-Narainpura road on August 20 and the calls on his mobile phones had been deleted. His bike too was found missing.

The investigation based on tips given by the victim’s sister Amandeep Kaur, married at Sirsa, has helped the team led by the Wahabwala SHO Hardeep Singh solve the mystery. The victim’s wife Harbir Kaur and cousin Arvinder Singh alias Babbu reportedly confessed to having hatched the conspiracy as they planned to marry each other after two years of love affair.

Babbu reportedly hired Raghubir Singh of Amarpura, Sonu of Kikkarkhera and Ravi Singh of village Ramsara. Gursahib Singh was called to village Rajpura over the phone on the night of August 19. After killing him, his neck was severed by a sharp-edged weapon and his body thrown on the sandy heap near the Rampura-Narainpura road.

All three killers later moved to Rajasthan Feeder on Dabwali Road, washed their clothes and threw Gursahib Singh’s bike in the deep water. Arvinder Singh returned home at 3 am and later went to his maternal parents’ house at Rampura Phul. His absence and Harbir Kaur’s fast changing versions created doubts. They have now reportedly confessed that four such attempts remained unsuccessful in the past.

The brutality in the killings in the recent past is a cause of concern for the police in Abohar and the neighbouring Sriganganagar areas. No clue has so far been found about the beheaded body of a pregnant woman, aged about 30 years. Her body was recently found at the tail-end of a sub-canal near village Usmankhera in the sub-division. Another young woman was found killed near the railway line in Sriganganagar area last week.

Prima facie, it appeared that she was run over by a train but the police later found that she was killed in the neighbouring fields, her neck was severed and the body dragged to the railway line to create confusion. Even as her pictures were released through the media, no one has so far identified the victim, nor any clue has been found.

Another beheaded body of a jeep driver, Satya Narayan Nayak (27), was found in Jaitsar (Sriganganagar) yesterday. The killers had severed his neck using a sharp weapon, investigation indicated. He was reported missing on Monday. The police has rounded up two persons with whom the victim reportedly had some monetary dispute.

Two drug peddlers nabbed
Tribune News Service

Muktsar, August 28
The district police claimed to have nabbed two drug peddlers and seized 160 tranquiliser cough syrups besides1,750 sedative tablets from their possession on the Lambi road in Gidderbaha yesterday.

Police sources said two youngsters, Sandeep Kumar and Chhotu Ram of Haryana, were going on a motorcycle and when intercepted, failed to produce any document in this regard.

A case under various sections of the NDPS Act has been registered in this regard at the Gidderbaha police station.

The motorcycle has also been seized. 

Youth killed in road accident
Our Correspondent

Fazilka, August 28
A youth, Raj Kumar (20), a resident of Basti Odanwali locality here was killed in a road accident on the border road in the afternoon. According to sources, Raj Kumar, a BCA student of Lovely Professional University, Jalandhar, was going on foot to bring green fodder. 

A tractor-trailer hit Raj Kumar from the rear as a result of which he was crushed to death.