Tears of pride in Kejriwal's eyes after Punjab CM Mann sacks own minister for corruption

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday lauded his Punjab counterpart & party-mate Bhagwant Mann for sacking the state Health Minister over charges of corruption. Taking to Twitter, Kejriwal said that Mann's act had brought 'tears to his eyes', and that the entire Nation was proud of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) today.

Earlier in the morning, Bhagwant Mann sacked his Health Minister Vijay Singla and revealed that the AAP leader had demanded a 1% commission from officials for contracts. The action was taken against Singla after concrete evidence was uncovered in this, he said. 

Health Minister Vijay Singla sacked by Punjab Govt, arrested

In a video message on Twitter, Bhagwant Mann remarked that the AAP was born out of an agitation against corruption, and would spare no one on such charges, even if the leader belonged to their own party. Mann stated that if he wanted, he could have kept quiet on the case, but that would 'deceive his conscience and the trust of lakhs of people' who voted for the party.

"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," said Mann

"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.

After his sacking, Vijay Singla was arrested by the Punjab Police. The leader 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.