Chandigarh: Former Punjab forest minister Sadhu Singh Dharamsot was arrested by the Vigilance Bureau on Tuesday morning in an alleged corruption case. The Congress leader, who was the social welfare and forest minister in the Amarinder Singh government, was arrested from Amloh city of Fatehpur Sahib district. A local journalist Kamaljit Singh, who was allegedly an aide of Dharamsot, was also arrested. The development came a week after the Vigilance Bureau arrested Gurnampreet Singh, a divisional forest officer, and contractor Harminder Singh Hummi, who provided details of the alleged wrongdoings during Dharamsot’s tenure as a minister. The Punjab Vigilance Bureau’s Chief Director Varinder Kumar alleged that Dharamsot accepted a bribe of Rs 500 for felling each tree. “Over time, around Rs 1.25 crore was given to the minister as commission,” Kumar said. Dharamsot also used to take bribes for giving no-objection certificates for the transfer of forest department officials, Kumar alleged. A case has been registered against Dharamsot under sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act. “Dharamsot will be presented before a court and police remand will be sought to further probe the scam,” Kumar said.
