Punjab scraps vigilance panel set up by Capt Amarinder

While tabling the Bill, Mann had said that the Vigilance Commission was not needed in the state. “There are multiple agencies in the state, including the state vigilance department, to deal with corruption cases. Therefore, to avoid overlapping, contradictory findings, resultant delays and gaps in communication, it has become necessary to repeal the Punjab State Vigilance Commission Act 2020 (Punjab Act No 20 of 2020),” the CM had said adding that the Bill was in the larger interest of the public.

He has also said that Commission was mandated to inquire or initiate inquires into complaints against public servants under the Prevention of Corruption Act 1988, and Prevention of Corruption (Amendment) Act, 2018, however, it had failed to serve any useful objective except for being a burden on the state exchequer.

Government officials said that the government wanted to bring a stricter system by disbanding the Commission as the AAP government was tightening its noose around previous ministers and MLAs besides several officials in cases of alleged corruption.

He added the state commission, set up on November 13, 2020, was supposed to function on the lines of the Central vigilance commission, but it had serious deviations.

It is not only Mann’s government that wanted to disband the Commission. It was done by previous SAD-BJP government also. Amarinder took over the reins of the state twice and during both his terms he had set up the Vigilance Commission.

The state vigilance commission was first set up in October 2006 during the Congress regime. However, soon after assuming power, the Parkash Singh Badal-led SAD-BJP government dissolved it in March 2007.

Following this, the commission was constituted again in November 2020. Amarinder Singh government had appointed Justice Mehtab Singh Gill, (retired) of the Punjab and Haryana high court as the head of the commission in April 2021 and his tenure was to end in April 2026. Once the governor gives his assent, the post and office will cease to exist.

During his 2002 tenure, Amarinder Singh had appointed former High Court judge Amar Dutt as its first chairman, but in 2007, the Akali Dal formed the BJP government and disbanded the commission. The Vigilance Commission is also responsible for appointments to the Vigilance Bureau.

The governor had not given his assent stating that it was a money Bill and the government had not taken his prior approval to table it. In early November, the Supreme Court had directed the Governor to clear state’s Bills. The Governor had on December 6 reserved three pending Bills for the consideration of the President.

All three Bills, reserved for President were controversial, and one of them, The Punjab Universities Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2023, was about removing the Governor as the chancellor of universities in the state.

The other two Bills were The Sikh Gurudwaras (Amendment) Bill, 2023 and The Punjab Police (Amendment) Bill, 2023. The former is to bring about an independent mechanism for the selection and appointment of suitable persons to the post of the police chief; the latter is aimed at freeing the undue control of a particular family over the rights to telecast sacred Gurbani.

All three Bills are controversial, and one of them, The Punjab Universities Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2023, concerns removing the Governor as the chancellor of universities in the state.

The other two Bills are The Sikh Gurudwaras (Amendment) Bill, 2023 and The Punjab Police (Amendment) Bill, 2023. The former is to bring about an independent mechanism for the selection and appointment of suitable persons to the post of the police chief; the latter is aimed at freeing the undue control of a particular family over the rights to telecast sacred Gurbani.