ex-punjab-minister-bhullar-held-in-suicide-case

Former Punjab transport minister Laljit Singh Bhullar was arrested on Monday from Mandi Gobindgarh in Fatehgarh Sahib district in connection with a suicide abetment case involving a state warehousing corporation officer.

The arrest came two days after Bhullar resigned from the cabinet following allegations that he had harassed Gagandeep Singh Randhawa, a district manager with the Punjab State Warehousing Corporation in Amritsar. Randhawa allegedly died by consuming poison on Saturday.

A senior police officer confirmed the arrest, which took place hours after the issue was raised in Parliament by Congress MP Gurjeet Singh Aujla. Responding to the matter, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said a CBI probe could be ordered if Punjab MPs jointly submit a request.

 

‘Rumours being spread’: Bhullar

Ahead of his arrest, Bhullar took to social media, claiming he was voluntarily surrendering and rejecting allegations that he had absconded.

“Every decision in my life has been guided by their welfare and by the path of truth. But today, the rumours being spread, that I have absconded, are not true. I have never been someone who runs away from the truth,” he said.

Also read: Punjab minister Laljit Bhullar quits after manager’s suicide

“I have complete faith in the law of the country and unwavering trust in the justice system. I have not run anywhere; I am here in my Punjab... I am voluntarily surrendering myself in Mandi Gobindgarh,” he added.

 

Political reactions

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann said strict action would be taken against anyone violating the law, regardless of their position.

 

“For me, the entire Punjab is one family. If anyone in Punjab violates the law, strict action will be taken against them,” Mann said, adding that protecting influential individuals was not the government’s agenda.

 

Union Minister of State Ravneet Singh Bittu alleged that Bhullar had pressured the official to award a Food Corporation of India tender to a firm linked to his family, a charge central to the controversy.

 

Investigations into the case are currently underway.