Punjab Vigilance Bureau Arrests Ajaypal in Labour Cartage and Transport Tenders Scam

Police – Accident – Death – Obituary News : Punjab Vigilance Bureau Arrests Another Accused in Labour Cartage and Transport Tenders Scam

CHANDIGARH: The Punjab Vigilance Bureau (VB) has made another arrest in connection with the labour cartage and transport tenders scam in Nawanshahr grain markets. The accused, identified as Ajaypal, a resident of Udhanwal village in Nawanshahr, had been evading arrest in relation to this case.

Ajaypal, who is a contractor, surrendered before the court and was subsequently taken into custody by the bureau. The court granted him a two-day police remand to further investigate the case.

According to a spokesperson from the bureau, charges were initially filed against several individuals, including former food and civil supplies minister Bharat Bhushan Ashu, his personal assistant Pankaj Kumar alias Menu Malhotra, then deputy director of the food and civil supplies department R K Singla, manager of the district food supply corporation (DFSC) Rakesh Bhaskar, and three contractors – Telu Ram, Yashpal, and Ajaypal. These individuals were accused of committing fraud and causing significant losses to the state exchequer.

The spokesperson explained that during the filing of tenders for labour cartage and transport in the grain markets for wheat/paddy/stock articles in the year 2020-2021, Honey Kumar, the proprietor of RS Co-operative Labour and Construction Society, had submitted tenders for the Nawanshahr and Rahon clusters. Another entity, PG Godown, had filed tenders for Nawanshahr only at basic tender rates. However, the department rejected these tenders without providing any reason. Instead, the tenders were awarded to Telu Ram for the Nawanshahr cluster at a 71% higher rate and the Rahon cluster at a 72% higher rate.

In the subsequent tenders called for 2022-23, Honey Kumar once again submitted tenders at basic rates for labour works in the Rahon and Nawanshahr clusters. However, the district tender allocation committee rejected his bids and allotted these tenders to Ajaypal at a 73% higher rate for the works in the Nawanshahr cluster and 72% higher rate in the Rahon cluster.

Further investigation by the VB revealed that during the tender process, Telu Ram and Yashpal, for the 2020-21 tenders, and Ajaypal, during 2020-21 and 2022-23, had attached online lists of vehicle registration numbers for the transportation of goods. These lists were verified by the respective district transport authorities. However, it was discovered that a large number of vehicles mentioned in these lists, such as scooters, motorcycles, cars, pickups, tractor trailers, close body trucks, LPG tankers, and harvesters, were not suitable for transporting food grains.

Moreover, it was found that the registration numbers of fake vehicles mentioned in gate passes were accompanied by details of the quantity of food grains, suggesting a case of fake reporting and embezzlement. The officials and employees of the department responsible for verifying these gate passes had also paid the said contractors for work done without verifying the authenticity of the documents.

Additionally, the photocopies of Aadhaar cards provided by the contractors during the tender process were found to belong to minor workers or elderly individuals above the age of 60. Many Aadhaar cards were also illegible.

So far, five accused individuals – Ashu, Malhotra, Telu Ram, Yashpal, and Ajaypal – have been arrested in connection with this case. DFSC Bhaskar has passed away, while Singla, the suspended deputy director of the department, has been declared a proclaimed offender by the Ludhiana court.

The Punjab Vigilance Bureau continues its investigation into the labour cartage and transport tenders scam, aiming to bring all those involved to justice and recover the losses incurred by the state exchequer..