Dr Daljit Singh Cheema asks CM to intervene, says new Wakf Board Chairman should be appointed from the State
SAD urges State Power regulator to recommend independent probe into 25 per cent transmission and distribution losses admitted by PSPCL
Chandigarh, June 17, 2020: The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) today condemned the Punjab Wakf Board for taking an anti-Punjabi decision by doing away with the provision which made knowledge of Punjabi mandatory for recruitment into its ministerial staff and requested chief minister Capt Amarinder Singh to intervene in the matter immediately.
Talking to newsmen here, former minister Dr Daljit Singh Cheema said the Wakf Board had taken this anti-Punjab decision recently to facilitate the recruitment of outsiders. He said Wakf Board Chairman Junaid Raza Khan, who belonged to Rampur, had recently amended the Punjab Wakf Board (Ministerial Staff) Regulations, 2019 to make knowledge of Punjabi non-compulsory for direct recruitment to the Board.
Dr Cheema said the intentions of the Chairman were clear from the fact that when five of the ten members of the Board opposed this move Junaid Raza ensured the Regulations could be amended through his casting vote. “The Chairman has also defended his actions by stating that the amendment has been carried out to invite the best talent from other States and improve the functioning of the Board”. He said the move would further restrict employment of Punjabis to the Board and should be withdrawn immediately. “The chief minister should also replace the Wakf Board Chairman and entrust this responsibility to a Punjabi so that the latter could utilize the services of Punjabis to run the Board for the welfare of the Muslim community of Punjab”.
Talking about another issue, the SAD leader said it was shocking that the PSPCL was a mute witness to massive power thefts which had led to transmission and distribution losses of as much as 25 per cent. He said this was the reason why power was getting dearer in Punjab every few months with there being around 20 power hikes in the State in the last three years.
Giving details, Dr Cheema said the PSPCL had admitted to the Power Regulator that it was unable to check power theft which was an admission of total failure of the Board itself. He said such huge transmission and distribution losses were unacceptable as they translated into losses of thousands of crores to PSPCL. “The consumer will again have to face the brunt of this mismanagement”, the SAD leader said while urging the Power Regulator to recommend an independent probe into the entire issue. He said accountability should also be fixed for the losses so that they could be retrieved accordingly.