Haryana Police arrests IAS officer in corruption case
Faridabad (PTI): An IAS officer was arrested from Gurugram in a corruption case on Monday, police said.
He has been been identified as Dharmender Singh, posted as Resident Commissioner in Haryana Bhavan, Delhi, they said, adding he was apprehended in a joint operation by SIT and Faridabad Police.
It is alleged that the accused had illegally increased the amount of a tender from Rs 55 crore to Rs 87 crore for approval. Besides, he had taken a bribe of Rs 1.11 crore from a contractor when he was the commissioner of municipal corporation, Sonipat, police said.
A case was registered at Kotwali police station in Faridabad last year on the complaint by one Lalit Mittal, a resident of Ranjit Nagar, New Delhi, that Pankaj Garg, R B Sharma and J K Bhatia together took a bribe of Rs 1.11 crore from him on the pretext of getting him a government tender in the Sonipat municipal corporation, they said.
Police said the three men had told Mittal that the bribe amount had been distributed among higher officials. Later, Mittal did not get any government contract and he approached the police.
During investigation, it was revealed that IAS officer Singh had made irregularities in the construction of a building in Sonipat while he was the municipal corporation commissioner. He had increased a tender amount of 52 crore to 87 crore, they said.
The accused was also posted in Faridabad during the coronavirus pandemic period, police said.
"IAS officer Dharmender Singh has been arrested in a corruption case. He will be produced in a city court on Tuesday," said Sube Singh, spokesperson of Faridabad Police.
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Cong leader Prithviraj Chavan defiant after facing verbal missiles on Op Sindoor remarks
Mumbai (PTI): Despite facing criticism, senior Congress leader Prithviraj Chavan on Wednesday stood by his controversial comments that India faced a "total defeat" in aerial fight with Pakistan on the first day of Operation Sindoor on May 7.
The former Union minister refused to apologise for his comments on the Indian military operation against terror hubs in Pakistan and PoK in aftermath of massacre of tourists at Pahalgam in Jammu and Kashmir in April.
Talking to reporters in Pune on Tuesday, Chavan claimed India faced a "total defeat in the aerial fight (with Pakistan) on May 7 which lasted for half-an-hour".
"One may believe this or not. After that the Indian Air Force got grounded and not a single aircraft took flight that day.... be it Gwalior, Bhatinda or Sirsa, there was a possibility of aircraft being shot down, so our complete Air Force was grounded," the former Maharashtra chief minister had said.
Hitting out at Chavan, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde accused the Congress of speaking the language of Pakistan. He said questioning the military action was akin to demoralising the morale of armed forces.
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"The criticism does not stem from the love of the nation, but love for Pakistan," said the chief leader of the Shiv Sena, a key constituent of the BJP-led NDA.
Chavan, however, remained defiant.
"There is no question of apologising. The Constitution has given me the right to ask questions," the Congress veteran asserted.
Chavan also questioned the need of having a 12-lakh strong Army when future wars will be about aerial combats and missiles. "During Operation Sindoor we saw that there was no movement of the Army even for a kilometre," he had said.
BJP Lok Sabha MP and spokesperson Sambit Patra said Chavan's remarks are loaded with sedition.
"He (Chavan) has refused to apologise. The Indian armed forces struck 100 kms inside the Pakistan territory and destroyed 11 air strips (of the Pakistani Air Force). He made remarks that the Indian Army did not even move an inch (during the military operation). This is nothing but a statement full of sedition, a statement of a traitor," Patra said, lashing out at the Congress leader.
The BJP spokesperson maintained the Congress appears to be standing with Chavan and alleged the Opposition party is playing into foreign hands.
Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra should apologise for it, he added.
Union minister Giriraj Singh of the BJP insisted it was not right to devalue the valour of Indian armed forces.
Samajwadi Party MP Virendra Singh suggested that wherever armed forces are concerned, every Indian should be mindful of statements they make and ensure their comments do not demoralise the military.
Operation Sindoor was a result of "mistakes of politicians", he claimed.
TDP MP Krishna Devraylu said after the poll defeat in Bihar, the Congress is rattled and their leaders have been talking absurdly.
"Chavan's remarks are a prime example of this. This kind of disrespect to our armed forces is not necessary. If the Congress is angry with the NDA, it should show it in a different way and not drag armed forces into it," Devraylu opined.
AAP MP Ashok Mittal said such statements should not be made by any senior politician, especially by someone who has been a former chief minister.
The Indian armed forces registered a strong victory and destroyed terror launchpads in Pakistan during Operation Sindoor, Mittal added.
