Chandigarh (Punjab):
The Punjab government has reinstated two senior Vigilance Bureau officers , months after suspending them over alleged corruption charges. In a move that drew sharp political criticism, the government also declared their suspension period as “duty time.”
Congress leader and Punjab Leader of Opposition (LoP) Partap Singh Bajwa has questioned the government’s intentions behind the entire episode.
He said, “First, the AAP Punjab government in Punjab suspended senior Vigilance Bureau officers, claiming a crackdown on corruption. Now, they’re reinstated in the same posts, and the suspension period is not even counted. Both decisions can’t be right.”
Bajwa went further and alleged that the suspension may have been politically motivated. “Did AAP suspend them to make them fall in line, and now they’ve complied? This isn’t governance. It’s intimidation,” he said.
According to the official order issued by the Department of Home Affairs, Harpreet Singh Mander, PPS, has been reinstated to his position as SSP, Vigilance Bureau, Jalandhar.
The order, signed by Additional Chief Secretary Alok Shekhar, stated, “The suspension order dated 25.04.2025 issued in respect of Sh. Harpreet Singh Mander, PPS is hereby revoked with immediate effect… The period of suspension of the officer shall be treated as duty period.”
The reinstatement of both officers who were previously suspended as part of the AAP-led government’s anti-corruption campaign has triggered a backlash from the opposition.
The reinstatement order was sent to top officials, including the Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister, the Director General of Police, the Chief Director of the Vigilance Bureau, and the Director of Information and Public Relations. It was also forwarded to the OSD, the chief secretary, and other related departments for immediate action.
The Punjab government has yet to issue a public explanation for the reversal, and no official response has been made regarding the corruption charges that led to the officers’ suspension in the first place.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)