The all-important meeting called by Punjab Chief Secretary Vijay Kumar Janjua with all the department heads on Friday concluded on a positive note regarding the crackdown on corruption. The meeting was called after Vigilance Bureau Chief Varinder Kumar met Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann and informed him of the obstacle of non-sanction by other departments they are facing in their fight against corruption. In the meeting, Varinder Kumar put forward the problems Vigilance is facing to eradicate corruption from Punjab. Interestingly, most cases related to excise, forest and Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs were discussed in the meeting. The Vigilance chief reiterated how the non-sanction from certain departments are hampering their fight against corruption. Notably, discussions on a case-by-case also took place in the meeting and the meeting concluded with the Chief Secretary directing all departments to provide sanction in a speedy manner if the Vigilance asks.
More about meeting
Punjab Chief Secretary Vijay Kumar Janjua on Friday categorically directed the concerned Administrative Secretaries of all departments to dispose of all corruption cases in a time-bound manner. During a meeting of senior officers of all departments and the Vigilance Department in his office, the Chief Secretary said that Punjab government led by Chief Minister Bhagwant has adopted a zero-tolerance policy against corruption and there are clear directions from CM Mann that no leniency should be accepted against any erring official.
The Chief Secretary said that the state government is committed to provide a clean, transparent and corruption-free system to the people of Punjab and for this purpose bribery from the top to the bottom should be stopped in all circumstances. He said that all the ongoing investigation into the corruption cases should be completed as per the rules and no delay or laxity will be tolerated.
CS unequivocally said that no accused will be spared at any cost and a strict action to be taken against bribe takers as per law, however, no injustice should be done to any innocent person. On this occasion, he sought information and progress report about pending cases in various departments.
He directed all the top officials of the state that at any level, the common people should not face any harassment in getting benefits of the government services and the concerned departments should issue instructions to their respective staff. He also appealed to the people of Punjab that if any government employee or officer demands a bribe from them, then they should complain about it at once.
Will Punjab finally stop corruption now?
As mentioned above, the meeting concluded on a positive note, however, it is well known that there is a big lobby pro-active in Punjab. It will be interesting to see whether multiple officers who were present in the meeting actually permit the sanctions as asked by the Vigilance. Only time will tell, whether this meeting bears any fruit or not.