Punjab MLA axed from cabinet over ‘graft’ active again, AAP says ‘matter sub judice’

The Mansa MLA attended an MLAs’ meet that Mann called Thursday in the wake of the governor’s withdrawal of permission for a special Vidhan Sabha session. Singla was also part of an AAP march in Chandigarh.

On September 18, Singla attended an AAP meeting in New Delhi, where he was spotted with Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, Punjab Health Minister Chetan Singh Jouramajra, Nabha MLA Dev Mann. Singla’s supporters shared on social media pictures of this meeting and tagged him.

Singla told The Indian Express that he was eager to help people given “the past few months’ gap in development work”. “Development works are going on in my area.. I am busy interacting with people. Some gap was there in the past few months in development work, but it will be covered up soon… People are coming to me with their demands and I am eager to help,” he said.

However, when asked about the corruption case, he said he was busy and would get back later.

The Opposition Shiromani Akali Dal, BJP and the Congress have targeted the AAP over the presence in its meetings of an MLA it had labelled as corrupt.

AAP chief spokesperson Malwinder Singh Kang, who had earlier said the party would consider disciplinary action against Singla, said the MLA could continue his work since the corruption case was pending before court.

“We had removed him as health minister soon after we got to know about the 1% commission demand on tenders.. Now the matter is sub judice. So he can continue his work as an MLA,” he told The Indian Express. “He is on different committees of the Vidhan Sabha. So, being an MLA, if he is attending the meetings, I do not think there should be any issue…”

When asked about the disciplinary action, Kang said the AAP’s high command would decide it. “He is not part of any decision-making process anywhere in the government or even in the party,” he added.

Singla, a dentist, defeated the Congress’s Sidhu Moosewala by more than 63,000 votes in the 2022 elections. Later on May 29, Moosewala was murdered allegedly by gangsters. After coming out on bail on July 8, Singla visited Moosewala’s parents at their house and offered condolences.