Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) on Thursday asked Punjab Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh to tell Punjabis why he was not ordering a CBI inquiry into the Fateh kit scam even after it had been proved that the company, which had supplied the kits at severely inflated prices to the Punjab government after repeated re-tendering, was found to be running from a cold store.

“Recent disclosures about Grandway Incorporation, which supplied kits worth Rs 26 crore to the Punjab Government, indicate that the entire operation was fraudulent. This is the only reason why the original tender, which had been awarded to a company with a six-month validity at Rs 837 per kit, was re-tendered twice and awarded both times to Grandway at inflated prices of Rs 1,226 and Rs 1,338 per kit,” said senior leader and party MP Balwinder Singh Bhundur.

He said that only a free and fair inquiry can nail those responsible for this scam as it is apparent that Grandway is a proxy which has been used to earn ill-gotten wealth at the cost of the exchequer.

Bhundur said that media reports had exposed not only Grandway but the entire tendering process of the Congress Government. “It has been conclusively found that Grandway was running from a cold store in Ludhiana and dealt in the sale of clothes. Moreover, the Company does not have a valid license to supply medical kits,” he added.

Rajya Sabha MP said: “It is obvious that these facts were in the Government’s knowledge before award of tender to the company. The very fact that they were overlooked is reason enough for the immediate dismissal of Health Minister Balbir Singh Sidhu as well as action against all the officers and staff who were responsible for awarding the contract to the company.”

 Bhundur said that besides the Minister and staff of the Health department, it should also be verified whether the kickbacks from the scam were given to other higher-ups also.