Union Minister of State for Railways Ravneet Singh Bittu announced on Sunday that a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe will be initiated into the death of Gagandeep Singh Randhawa, a District Manager with the Punjab Warehousing Corporation. Randhawa had died on March 21 after allegedly consuming a poisonous substance, a fortnight prior to the minister’s statement.
Information was available with The Chenab Times that Minister Bittu made the announcement after holding a meeting with the deceased official’s family. The circumstances surrounding Randhawa’s death have been linked to alleged humiliation and pressure exerted by the former Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Transport Minister, Laljit Singh Bhullar.
The promise of a CBI inquiry into the alleged suicide had previously been made by Union Home Minister Amit Shah on March 23. At that time, Shah had stated that he would order a CBI inquiry if all Punjab Members of Parliament (MPs) submitted a written request. This assurance came in response to a query from Amritsar Lok Sabha MP Gurjeet Singh Aujla of the Congress, who had accused Bhullar of pressuring Randhawa, leading to the extreme step.
The alleged mistreatment was further highlighted by a video that surfaced on social media. In a purported 12-second clip, Randhawa is heard claiming that he was consuming a poisonous substance after experiencing humiliation and intimidation by Bhullar.
Ravneet Singh Bittu also pointed out that while the police had arrested former minister Bhullar, two other suspects, namely Bhullar’s father and Dilbagh Singh, remained at large. The minister further expressed his disappointment with the Punjab Congress chief Amrinder Singh Raja Warring for not signing a joint request for the CBI inquiry, despite an alleged prior agreement among all Punjab MPs to support such a demand. Bittu also criticized the silence of AAP MPs on the matter.
The Union Minister directed strong criticism towards the Aam Aadmi Party government led by Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann. Bittu stated that neither any minister from the state government nor any representative from the AAP party had visited the grieving family of Gagandeep Singh Randhawa, who were reportedly enduring a difficult period following his untimely demise. He added that the AAP government seemed to have no time to spare for its own official who took such a drastic step, indicating a failure to control its party leaders.
Bittu specifically mentioned former Transport Minister Laljit Singh Bhullar and, in a separate alleged accusation, referred to Raghav Chadha. The minister also claimed that Raghav Chadha was removed from the position of Deputy Leader of the AAP in the Rajya Sabha for allegedly failing to deposit the entire party’s collected funds.
The Chenab Times News Desk