Chandigarh March 22:
The Punjab and Haryana High Court directed the Punjab government to formulate more accurate guidelines for utilization of chief minister's relief fund, so that it is used for the purpose it is actually meant for.
The directions were issued by a division bench led by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi while disposing of a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by a Ludhianabased NGO, Resurgence India.
To make its intentions clear, the bench indicated that the CM's relief fund is meant for tackling natural calamities, like earthquakes, floods and fires, among others. Referring to instances of its misutilization, the bench observed that disbursement of honorarium to employees of CM staff, among others, from the fund goes against the guidelines it was framed under through a state government notification on January 14, 2009.
The bench directed the government to formulate more accurate guidelines in due course of time for disbursement of financial assistance out of the CM's relief fund. The bench, however, did not issue any direction for investigating the suspected embezzlement of Rs 28 lakh from this fund, as pointed out in audit reports, given the government's stand that the related record was destroyed in the fire following the bomb blast on August 1, 1995, in which then CM Beant Singh was killed.
The bench observed that in the face of non-availability of related records, any direction for investigation into the suspected embezzlement would be futile. The petitioner, HC Arora, cited 177 instances in which the fund had been misused.
The Punjab and Haryana High Court directed the Punjab government to formulate more accurate guidelines for utilization of chief minister's relief fund, so that it is used for the purpose it is actually meant for.
The directions were issued by a division bench led by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi while disposing of a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by a Ludhianabased NGO, Resurgence India.
To make its intentions clear, the bench indicated that the CM's relief fund is meant for tackling natural calamities, like earthquakes, floods and fires, among others. Referring to instances of its misutilization, the bench observed that disbursement of honorarium to employees of CM staff, among others, from the fund goes against the guidelines it was framed under through a state government notification on January 14, 2009.
The bench directed the government to formulate more accurate guidelines in due course of time for disbursement of financial assistance out of the CM's relief fund. The bench, however, did not issue any direction for investigating the suspected embezzlement of Rs 28 lakh from this fund, as pointed out in audit reports, given the government's stand that the related record was destroyed in the fire following the bomb blast on August 1, 1995, in which then CM Beant Singh was killed.
The bench observed that in the face of non-availability of related records, any direction for investigation into the suspected embezzlement would be futile. The petitioner, HC Arora, cited 177 instances in which the fund had been misused.
