Court attaches salary of Union forest ministry’s under secretary

Slug:{Punjab forest scam} Delay in sanction to prosecute IFS officer
A Mohali court has attached the salary of under secretary, Union ministry of environment, forests and climate change, for delay in sanction to prosecute Indian Forest Service (IFS) officer Vishal Chauhan.
The court of additional sessions judge, Mohali, Harsimranjit Singh passed orders as he found an application seeking more time to decide the approval for sanction of prosecution. The file has been pending with the Union government for the past one year.
Chauhan was arrested by the Punjab Vigilance Bureau for his alleged involvement in bribery and embezzlement in the forest department, in which two former Punjab ministers Sadhu Singh Dharamsot and Sangat Singh Gilzian are also accused.
“Sanction qua accused Vishal Chauhan again not received. Perusal of the file shows that vide letter dated July 23, the under secretary to the Government of India, MoEFCC, had requested for more time to finalise the case regarding sanction of prosecution of accused Vishal Chauhan, since the process of sanction for prosecution involves mandatory advice of CVC and seeking approval of the minister twice. However, it is disquieting to observe that almost four months have elapsed, but the competent authority has failed to finalise the case regarding sanction for prosecution of accused Chauhan, which is in gross derogation of circular of CVC in terms of Vineet Narain’s judgment of the Supreme Court,” reads the order.
The proceedings in this case have been held up for more than two-and-a-half years since the presentation of challan in July 2022 on this score alone. Under these compelling circumstances, salary of the under secretary Union ministry of environment, forests and climate change, is ordered to be attached and necessary intimation in this regard be given to quarter concerned, read the orders.
A separate letter be written to the under secretary directing her to appear in person and explain the reasons for the inordinate delay on the part of the competent authority, the judge further directed, fixing December 9 as the next date of hearing.
The vigilance bureau had arrested Chauhan in 2022. His name has been nominated in the FIR in which vigilance busted the forest scam with the arrest of Guramanpreet Singh, divisional forest officer (DFO), Mohali, and contractor Harmahinder Singh for demanding and accepting a bribe from coloniser Devinder Sandhu.