6 lakh acres encroached in Punjab, but no action on report

Jupinderjit Singh

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, May 19

While the state government is probing alleged shady land deals of politicians or their aides besides encroachment of 3,700 acres of village common land in Mohali, it is sitting over a report of statewide encroachments and illegal sale of over 6 lakh acres.

A report, which claimed massive encroachments in Punjab since 1991, was submitted to the state government in June 2019. Before that, a two-member panel comprising former Judge SS Saron and ex-DGP Chander Shekhar submitted its report to a Cabinet sub-committee headed by then Urban Local Bodies Minister Navjot Singh Sidhu on March 27, 2019. But no action was taken against the encroachers. No department even acknowledged to The Tribune that it had the report.

Chander Shekhar report of 2019

• The Chander Shekhar report pertains to encroachments and illegal sale of over 6 lakh acres across Punjab
• It was submitted to the government in June 2019
• No action has been taken against the encroachers so far and no department has acknowledged it has the report

Some contents of the report made public earlier said influential persons, including politicians and police officials, were the main beneficiaries of the illegal sale of encroached land.

This month, Vigilance authorities registered two FIRs as regards encroachment and multiple sale of village common land at Majrian and Seonkh villages in Mohali district.

These cases pertained to encroachment of 3,700 acres, whereas the Chander Shekhar report had claimed that over 6 lakh acres had been encroached upon.

Retired DGP Chander Shekhar said the investigation report was submitted to the Cabinet sub-committee in March 2019 and later to the Ministry of Revenue through the Secretary, Revenue Department, vide an email in June the same year.

However, officials of the Revenue Department feigned ignorance about the report. Revenue Minister Gurpreet Kangar said he was not aware of the report. His officials also could not confirm its whereabouts. Officials in the Chief Secretary’s office said in case any report was received, it must have been forwarded to the Revenue Department.

Chander Shekhar started working on the issue of encroachment of village common land on the periphery of Chandigarh in 2007. The Punjab and Haryana High Court asked him to probe allegations levelled by a DGP-rank officer against another DGP of encroaching upon the government land.

In fact, Chander Shekhar submitted 12 reports between 2008 and 2010 mentioning that around 50 politicians and police officials were beneficiaries of various benami deals. The court then formed Justice Kuldip Singh Commission for probe.

When the Amarinder Singh government came to power, it formed a Cabinet sub-committee under then Urban Local Bodies Minister Navjot Singh Sidhu to initiate action. However, recommendations of the Sidhu committee seemed to have been forgotten after his portfolio was changed when he alleged at an election rally that Capt Amarinder and the Badal family protected each other.