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By Press Trust of India: Former Punjab chief minister Charanjit Singh Channi on Friday appeared before the Vigilance Bureau in connection with a disproportionate assets matter and was questioned by the officials for nearly seven hours. Channi described the probe as “totally political”.
The bureau has been inquiring into allegations of Channi amassing assets disproportionate to his known source of income. Last month, the bureau had issued a lookout circular against the former chief minister.
Emerging out from Vigilance Bureau’s Mohali office in the evening, Channi again slammed the AAP government, alleging that “this government is treating worse than even the Mughals. They want to use every way to humiliate and defame.”
“In democracy, this is not the way… that without any basis they try to build up a case. I stand by what I said earlier in the morning at my press conference, they may do whatever they have to,” Channi told reporters outside the VB’s Mohali office. “I always worked with honesty and will continue to do so,” he said.
However, Punjab Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema said the AAP government has started a campaign against corruption and further stated if Channi has nothing to hide he should have no problem in facing the VB probe.
Cheema said Channi is staging a drama and referred to the Enforcement Directorate action against Congress leader’s nephew Bhupinder Singh Honey, who had been booked last year in a money laundering case linked to alleged illegal sand mining in the border state.
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Ahead of entering the bureau’s Mohali office around 11 am, the Congress leader had slammed the state’s Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government over his date of appearance being advanced and claimed that Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann’s regime was indulging in “vendetta politics”.
Addressing a press conference before he reached the bureau’s office, Channi launched a scathing attack on the AAP government and said he “may be tortured, arrested or even killed”, but he is prepared to face it.
“Hang me if even one person says Channi was indulging in any corrupt practice,” the former CM said, breaking down in tears.
The bureau had initially asked Channi to appear for questioning on April 12. He, however, requested for another date to join the investigation, which the bureau allowed, asking him to appear on April 20. Later, the Vigilance Bureau advanced it to Friday.
Sources said during questioning by the VB officials, details about properties of Channi and his family, bank accounts, their details, any investments he made abroad, especially when he was on a long trip to the USA and Canada last year after elections, were sought.
Besides, he was also quizzed about activities of his nephew Bhupinder Honey, the sources said.
A few Congress leaders from Punjab are already facing VB probe for alleged involvement in corruption.
Asked about being questioned in the matter before he entered the bureau’s office, Channi rubbished that he had accumulated any disproportionate assets and said, “The probe is totally political. Let them do what they want.”
Channi said ahead of the Jalandhar Lok Sabha bypoll, he has raised some issues. He alleged that the AAP government has been rattled by the questions he raised including those relating to Dalits, “on what the chief minister said about Akal Takht Jathedar”, about justice in sacrilege cases and farmers’ issues.
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“And when someone speaks the truth, the one who is a liar feels the pinch — that is what has happened with the AAP government,” he alleged.
At the press conference, the former chief minister was flanked by senior party leaders, including the Congress’ Punjab unit chief Amrinder Singh Raja Warring, Harish Chaudhary and Partap Singh Bajwa.
Channi thanked the Congress leadership for standing behind him. He said he will go to the VB office alone and added he does not fear arrest.
Meanwhile, Channi also slammed the AAP government over his date of appearance being advanced and alleged it was part of the dispensation’s “vendetta politics”.
“They summoned me on a public holiday when offices are shut. For torturing Channi, the offices have been especially opened and the day they have chosen is (the day) of Baisakhi and Dr BR Ambedkar’s birth anniversary,” he said, asking if this is democracy, mobocracy or oligarchy and claimed the government wants to keep him away from campaigning for the Congress candidate in next month’s Jalandhar Lok Sabha bypolls.
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Channi said he raised the sacrilege issue and demanded justice.
“I raised some issues of the Dalit community, I talked about the farmers and other matters,” he said and claimed that the government did not like the questions he raised. Channi challenged Chief Minister Mann to prove his allegations that he owned property worth Rs 170 crore and had 250 acres of land.
He asked whether he was being targeted as people cannot digest how a Dalit, who came from humble background, became chief minister even though he might have remained in the post only for three months.
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