The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Saturday carried out searches at 11 places in connection with an alleged disproportionate assets case against Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh, an action evoking sharp criticism from Congress which termed it as “inhumane and revengeful”.
Advertisement
The CBI’s raids came on a day when Singh’s daughter was getting married.
Notably, chief minister Singh himself has always rejected the allegations of corruption as instigated by former BJP chief minister PK Dhumal and his associates.
The searches started at 7.55am soon after Singh had left his residence in Shimla for the wedding function, sources in Shimla said.
CBI sources confirmed that the raids follow the decision, on Friday (September 25), to convert a preliminary enquiry (PE) earlier registered against the HP chief minister into a “regular FIR” charging him under provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act.
Beside Virbhadra Singh, his wife Pratibha Singh, son Vikramaditya Singh and daughter Aparajita Kumari have also been named in the case alleging that the chief minister and his family amassed huge wealth.
CBI has alleged Singh and his family members acquired illegal income/assets worth Rs 6.1 crore while he was steel minister from 2009 to 2011.
Please enter your email.
The Chief Minister and his family members were back at around 11am but did not speak to media persons waiting outside the residence.
The raids were conducted by a 18 member team which arrived at the Chief Minister’s residence in five vehicles at around 8:00 am.
The BJP had accused Virbhadra Singh of taking bribe from an energy firm for giving it a 10-month extension. They said, “we are fearing the misuse of central investigating agencies to implicate Mr. Singh by making false accusations”. The CBI after a detail inquiry had already submitted its preliminary report to Delhi high court in a sealed cover.
During his tenure as union minister, Virbhadra Singh had invested Rs.6.1 crore in life insurance policies through an LIC agent Anand Chauhan, whose house in Shimla was also raided.
The chief whip of Bharatiya Janata Party’s Legislature party, Suresh Bharadwaj, and party spokesman Ganesh Dutt demanded immediate resignation of Virbhadra Singh.
Advertisement
“Is this democracy or emergency?”
