The Bathinda court has issued an arrest warrant for Manpreet Singh Badal, former finance minister of Punjab, subsequent to a Lookout circular by the Punjab Vigilance Department. Badal faces charges relating to alleged property irregularities in Bathinda.
This development follows a recent verbal spat between Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann and Badal. Mann criticised Badal for eluding the police a day ago.
Badal, who joined the BJP post his departure from Congress in January, has been implicated by BJP’s Sarup Chand Singla. Singla alleges that Badal misused his ministerial power during his Congress tenure, converting commercial plots for personal residential use.
The Punjab Vigilance Bureau registered a case against Badal and five other individuals this Monday regarding the property issue. In the wake of the FIR, police launched a search for Badal. Despite raiding his residence and other known places, his current location remains unknown. The Lookout circular was initiated against Badal on Monday.
Besides Badal, the former chief of Bathinda Development Authority, PCS Bikramjit Shergill, along with Rajiv Kumar, Amandeep Singh, Vikas Arora, and Pankaj face charges related to the case. Kumar, Singh, and Arora have already been apprehended.