Pesticide scam: Sandhu rejoins work, Punjab to challenge Punjab and Haryana High Court order

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Sandhu had been removed as officiating director on September 17 amid allegations that he had ordered a “sub-standard” pesticide which had proved ineffective in tackling the whitefly attack on cotton. Sandhu has denied charges of any wrongdoing even as the department maintained that he was removed pending an inquiry by agriculture special secretary Daljit Singh. The inquiry report was to be submitted by September 30.

“It will take another couple of days before I submit the inquiry report. The focus is on challenging the stay and requesting the court to vacate it. The government is approaching the court in this regard in a day or so,” Daljit Singh said.

In his petition, Sandhu had submitted that he had been in the post since 2011 as he was the senior-most joint director. He added that the state government withdrew his officiating charge and handed it over as additional charge to a junior officer in Gurdial Singh. It was also submitted that the petitioner has an unblemished service record and had been given two years’ service extension till April 30, 2016.

Officials of the agriculture department spent Tuesday sifting through the records to prepare grounds for challenging the stay order which has reinstated Sandhu.
An official of the department said the officiating director was a stop-gap arrangement and that the court had noted that government should ensure a “workable” arrangement till the pendency of the case.

“In appointing an officiating director, the seniority clause does not carry much weight. Sandhu was appointed as additional director in 2011 and in 2014 he was given charge of officiating director. The government would plead before the court that under the given circumstances till the case relating to appointment of regular director was not decided, it can make appointments which are workable. Also, Sandhu is in the second year of his extension period and the government would also plead that an official’s name coming up in some controversial issue during extension period also calls for his removal pending inquiry,” the official added.

Sandhu, when contacted, said he had joined as officiating director following the court order.

He added that he would not comment further since matter was sub judice.