Punjab: Congress leader files complaint against minister over 'delay' in rescuing Fateh

LUDHIANA: Congress leader Gursimran Singh Mand who recently raked a controversy by wiping off the blackened statue of slain PM Rajiv Gandhi with his turban, on Tuesday, filed a complaint with the Punjab human rights commission against his own party's senior leader and minister Vijayinder Singla blaming him for delay in the operation to rescue two-year-old Fatehveer Singh who fell into a borewell near Sangrur and died.
Demanding strict action against Singla Mand in his complaint, he said, "On June 6, Fatehveer Singh accidently fell into 150-foot-deep borewell. As soon as the incident occurred chief minister of Punjab Captain Amrinder Singh had demanded report about the incident, but cabinet minister Vijay Inder Singla failed to send correct report and actual on-ground situation to the CM. Due to this, the rescue operation was delayed and it took 6-7 days to reach the trapped child and as a result, he died due to the delay."
Mand also added, "Minister Singla took the mission to save Fatehveer Singh very lightly. But had he taken a serious view of the incident and ordered the administration to rope in sophisticated machinery, the child could have been rescued by now. Also when on June 10 after request of state government army arrived on the spot to rescue Fatehveer, why did NDRF not give command of the operation to army. Another biggest lapse of this entire botched-up operation is that when the child was finally pulled up from same borewell in which he fell then what was the need to waste so much time and dig a parellel bore? In this entire operation along with loss of an innocent life, government funds have been wasted and people too have been misguided. So it is my urgent appeal to state human rights commission to investigate the entire matter and probe the role of Vijayinder Singla for delay in the resuce operation and in case he or anyone else is found guilty, a strict action should be taken."