The two-month old AAP government led by Bhagwant Mann on Tuesday sacked Health Minister Vijay Singla over corruption charges.
The Chief Minister said the health minister was involved in corruption cases and they had proof of that. The minister is a legislator from the Mansa Assembly. He was the first minister representing the Assembly as a Cabinet minister in over three decades.
Mann ordered the registration of an FIR against the minister.
The charge against the minister was that he was demanding one per cent commission from each government tender.
Mann said there would be zero tolerance to corruption. He also said that the decision was taken to ensure that his government remains corrupt free.
Vijay Singla was on Tuesday arrested by the state's Anti-Corruption Branch following complaints of corruption against him.
"I am taking strict action against the minister. I am removing him from the Cabinet. We have found substantial proof of his involvement in the corruption case.
"I do not care if the Opposition parties want to use this to hit out at us. The point is that we will not tolerate anyone indulging in such malpractices. Our party national convener has made it clear that corruption will not be tolerated. He had himself removed a minister in Delhi in 2015 after corruption charges were levelled against the minister," the Chief Minister said in a video message.
He said Singla had admitted to wrongdoings. Singla had got the highest number of votes polled in his favour in the Assembly election.
Same is the case with Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy in Andhra Pradesh. He never puts law and order at the stake of nepotism and favoritism.
He made his own cousin Konda Reddy arrested in an intimidation case. He also made his own party MLC Anantha Babu arrested in a murder allegation.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath also follows the same method of not showing special concern towards his own people in the matter of crime.
It is established that these leaders never protect criminals in the name of caste, creed, religion or relation. This is what India needs.
