Congress reacts to Punjab Health Minister's ouster; 'AAP govt neck-deep in corruption'

In his first reaction to Punjab Health Minister Vijay Singla's ouster and arrest over corruption charges, Punjab Congress chief Amarinder Singh Raja Warring affirmed that his party's stance was vindicated. Taking to Twitter on Tuesday, Warring stressed that Congress had always held that the Bhagwant Mann-led AAP government is neck-deep in corruption. Alleging that the rot is much deeper, he dared the Punjab CM to take action against other leaders involved in corruption as well. Leader of Opposition Partap Singh Bajwa also lashed out at the AAP government citing that its tall claims of eradicating corruption had fallen flat. 

Bhagwant Mann sacks Health Minister

In an unprecedented development a day earlier, Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann sacked the state's Health Minister Vijay Singla over corruption allegations against him. Singla is a first-time MLA who defeated Congress candidate and singer Sidhu Moosewala from the Mansa seat by 63,323 votes in the recently concluded Assembly polls. Releasing a video message, Mann stated that Singh had demanded a 1% commission from officials for contracts. 

Bhagwant Mann stated, "Shri Arvind Kejriwal had told me, 'Bhagwant, I can't tolerate dishonesty, bribe and corruption worth 1 paise'. Then, I gave him my word that this won't happen. Our party was born out of an agitation against corruption. We will not spare even our own. A case was brought to my notice alleging that a Minister in my government demands a 1% commission on every tender. I took this case very seriously. Only I know about this case. Neither the opposition parties nor the media know about this case."

"If I wanted to, I could have scuttled the case. But I would have deceived my conscience and the trust of lakhs of people who voted for me. That's why I am taking strict action against this Minister and sacking him from the Council of Ministers. I have given instructions to the police to register a case against him. The name of the Minister is Dr. Vijay Singla. He is my Health Minister. He indulged in malpractices in his department. He has accepted his guilt as well," he added. Subsequently, Singla was arrested by the Punjab Police and sent to police custody till May 27.

After Kejriwal remarked that Mann's action brought tears to his eyes, BJP slammed AAP for making lofty promises during polls. Addressing a press conference, BJP national spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia said, "Arvind Kejriwal's government in Punjab is a sinner government. His party has a 100% rate in corruption. I'll only say one thing, India's Punjabi has self-respect and today, they are saying, 'Sadda haq, aithe rakh (It's our right, keep it here)'. People's hard-earned money is not for AAP leaders, not for their corruption".