These allegations were leveled when two BOI heads were removed and another head wanted to leave within 2.5 months.
Chandigarh: The Punjab Government is facing heat from the opposition. Punjab Government has been accused of framing opposition leaders in a drugs case. Punjab Government has alleged that Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) for synthetic drugs case, that came to the light in 2013.
There are allegations on the Congress-ruled Punjab Government, which was coercing Bureau of Investigation (BOI) officers to implicate SAD chief Sukhbir Badal and Bikram Majithia.
These allegations were leveled when two BOI heads were removed and another head wanted to leave within 2.5 months.
Sources say the government was pressuring these officers to book Akali Dal leaders in the synthetic drugs case after the High Court recently said that the state government was free to act against the people named in the Special Task Force (STF) report submitted in 2018.
Bureau of Investigation Chief ADGP SK Asthana is the latest to distance himself from the case. He has, however, proceeded on medical leave and got himself admitted to a hospital.
Varinder Kumar was posted as new BOI chief on October 13, 2021, by removing Arpit Shukla who remained on this post for just four months. Varinder Kumar remained as BOI Chief for just 48 days as on December 2, 2021, he was replaced by S K Asthana. Interestingly, Asthana proceeded on medical leave within 10 days of his new posting.
“Charanjit Singh Channi, Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa, and Navjot Singh Sidhu during the past 2.5 months have only persecuted opposition leaders. They have directed police officers to implicate Sukhbir Badal and Bikram Singh Majithia in cases,” Sukhbir Badal said.
Badal said that police officers have refused to obey the orders. He claimed that first Arpit Shukla then Varinder Kumar and now SK Asthana have refused to work under pressure.
“Charanjit Singh Channi should remember that he has been made the chief minister to serve the people and not to persecute opposition leaders. We are not afraid of false cases and FIRs,” Sukhbir Badal said.
Charanjit Singh Channi’s government is also on the target of the Aam Aadmi Party that has demanded a high-level probe into the alleged kickbacks in transfers of police officers.
Frequent transfers of BOI officers and allegations of kickbacks in transfers of police officers have put the Congress government in the dock.
Reacting to the allegations, Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa said, “Captain Amarinder Singh should be blamed for not taking action against the accused during the past 4.5 years. Though we have a shortage of time, the guilty will not go scot-free,” Punjab Home Minister Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa said.
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