VEIL ON VELVET PURSE

VEIL ON VELVET PURSE by B.M.Singh .

 During the Beant Singh regime a new wave of creation of districts started and lawyers of almost all tehsil towns held dharnas demanding district status for their respective towns. Nawanshahar had somewhat upper hand as from the town hailed Mr. Dilbag Singh the then Agriculture Minister. Beant assured Dilbag of up-gradation of Nawanshahar to district status. Dilbag spared no effort in collecting funds from the businessmen . After all it was not a small thing; a district had to be carved out'. Later on  Beant was Killed, (while Dilbag expired in march 1996.)

 However on Nov. 7, 1995, Beant's successor H.S.Brar inaugurated the new district of Nawan Shahr honouring the word of his predecessor. Right in the Public meeting at inauguration ceremony, the CM was presented a red velvet bag containing an amount of Rs' 51- lakh as a thanks giving gesture from the residents of the new district.

  The problem is the money which Mr. Brar allegedly received but reached neither the state exchequer nor at the already bulging Congress account. Quite obvious Mr. Brar who otherwise had comparatively a cleaner image inaugurated the new district in his capacity as the Chief Minister.

 Not only the formal handing of the velvet bag at the public meeting, it is reported that the money was duly counted at the Chandigarh residence of Mr. Brar where Dilbag Singh reached along with his personal staff to deliver the bag.

 Mr. Brar who initially denied the presentation of the velvet bag to him, has now admitted that a bag was given to him which contained only Rs. 1.5 lakh. just 'the reversal of the figure . He says it was received for the development of the new distrcit.

 The controversy not surfaced through efforts of investigating agency or some journalistic scoop rather some are dissatisfaction over the distribution of the booty.

 Though Mr. Jatinder Singh Kariha the local Akali who had unsuccessfully contested the last assembly election and was defeated at the hands of Charanjit Singh Channi son of Late Dilbag Singh raised this question of velvet bag but the issue was drowned in the election process.

 Now since Mr. Brar's is on the receiving end and is trying to raise his  head in the Congress, Charanjit Singh Channi finds it a golden opportunity to join the Congress by  maligning Mr. Brar. Mr. Channi opposing even his mother the Congress nominee recently addressed a press conference along with ex aides of Dilbag Singh and claimed that they had ample evidences to prove that the velvet bag had Rs.51 lakh and not Rs. 1.5 lakh as Mr. Brar claimes.  Pt. Amar Nath Gautam, a close associate of Dilbag claimed that the bag was duly counted by Brar in the presence of Dilbag at his residence. Gautam says even the driver and cook of Mr. Dilbag were Present during the counting process.

 Bibi Rajinder Kaur Bhathal is all set to use the velvet bag issue to silence her opponents of the Brar group and will not allow Brar to surface again. If the velvet bag allegations are true, the home coming of Brar will perhaps delayed.

 Bhathal is also being aided by Mr. Raj Khurana former treasurer of the party who is also publicly alleging that the velvet bag was not deposited to him by Brar or anybody else.

 It is Maninderjit Singh Bitta who has come to the rescue of Mr.Brar and has fired a counter allegation at Raj Khurana alleging that Khurana has not furnished the accounts of another amount of Rs. 3 crore. Bitta has straightaway alleged that Raj Khurana has misappropriated the amount of Rs. 3 crore. Khurana denies the allegation altogether. This- is the Congress culture anyway.