An FIR has been registered against 14 people in connection with an alleged multi-crore financial scam involving the gram panchayats of Malkpur Bet village after a district-level inquiry found prima facie evidence of large-scale misuse of public funds, procedural violations and irregular expenditures spanning several years.
Event Context
The inquiry found the most significant irregularities during the period from August 2019 to December 2021, when transactions worth ₹6.26 crore were scrutinised. The committee concluded that around ₹4.33 crore, which should have been placed in fixed deposits under government guidelines, was allegedly spent in violation of rules. Former BDPO Dhanwant Singh, panchayat secretary Baldev Singh and sarpanch Baljinder Singh were held responsible.
Irregularities were reported in expenditure of ₹1.38 crore between December 2021 and May 2022, for which former BDPO Malkit Singh Khoti, panchayat secretary Baldev Singh and sarpanch Baljinder Singh were held accountable. No wrongdoing was found during the tenure of former BDPO Baljit Singh between May and July 2022. The committee examined transactions worth ₹1.60 crore between July 2022 and June 2023 and held former BDPO Rajinder Kaur, panchayat secretaries Kiranpal Singh and Gurmel Singh, and ex-sarpanch Baljinder Singh responsible. Investigation officer Damanpreet Singh said the FIR was lodged following a detailed probe.
Player Focus
Those booked in the case are Rupinderjit Kaur, former block development and panchayat officer (BDPO), Ludhiana-I, Jaswinder Singh, assistant engineer, Teja Singh, gram sewak, Malkpur Bet, Baldev Singh, panchayat secretary, Sukhminder Singh, panchayat secretary, Malkit Kaur, former sarpanch, Gurmel Singh, former BDPO, Jagroop Singh, panchayat secretary, Kiranpal Singh, panchayat secretary, Kamal Bharti, village development officer-cum-panchayat secretary, Dhanwant Singh, an employee of the BDPO office, Malkit Singh Bhatti, an employee of the BDPO office, Rajinder Kaur, an employee of the BDPO office, and Gurmel Singh of Malkpur Bet.
A key finding of the inquiry relates to former BDPO Rupinderjit Kaur and Gaurav Kumar, personal assistant to the MLA from Gill constituency. The report stated that both were repeatedly called to appear before the committee and participate in cross-examination proceedings but did not do so.
The inquiry traced the alleged irregularities across multiple administrative tenures. Between May 2017 and November 2018, payments exceeding ₹3.23 crore were made after the compensation amount was received. While ₹2 crore was transferred to Panchayat Samiti Ludhiana-I, expenditure of about ₹1.23 crore was allegedly incurred without following due procedure. The committee held Rupinderjit Kaur, assistant engineer Jaswinder Singh, gram sewak Teja Singh, panchayat secretaries Baldev Singh and Sukhminder Singh, and then sarpanch Malkit Kaur responsible for misuse of funds.
For the period between November 2018 and August 2019, transactions worth ₹43.50 lakh were found to have been carried out in violation of prescribed norms. Former BDPO Gurmel Singh, panchayat secretaries Baldev Singh, Jagroop Singh and Kiranpal Singh, VDO-cum-panchayat secretary Kamal Bharti and sarpanch Malkit Kaur were named in the report.
Team Analysis
The FIR, registered at PAU police station under Sections 420, 409 and 120-B of the IPC, stems from a complaint filed by Nazar Singh, a retired police inspector and resident of Malkpur Bet, who alleged that crores of rupees received by the village panchayat were misappropriated between 2013 and 2024.
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According to the complaint, the gram panchayat received nearly ₹13.74 crore in 2017-18 as compensation after government acquisition of panchayat land adjoining a bypass. Additional funds in the form of government grants and Rural Development Fund (RDF) allocations were also deposited into the panchayat account. The complainant alleged that around ₹9 crore was shown as expenditure on village streets and drains without following prescribed procedures and approvals, raising suspicion of embezzlement and financial misconduct.
He further alleged that no gram sabha audit had been conducted since 2017 and that portions of the panchayat’s cash book and proceedings register were missing or had been tampered with. The allegations prompted the Ludhiana administration to constitute an inquiry committee on August 27, 2024. The probe later came under the scrutiny of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, which directed on February 13, 2025, that the inquiry be completed within six months. After the committee sought additional time, the court granted a three-month extension on October 28, 2025.
The inquiry examined bank records, technical reports, panchayat files and other official documents running into more than 2,293 pages. The officials concluded that substantial expenditures had been made without adhering to mandatory procedures, including obtaining sanctioned estimates and departmental approvals.
The committee also relied on the statement of gram sewak Teja Singh, who alleged that pressure had been exerted on him and that signatures had been obtained on blank cheques. According to the report, neither Rupinderjit Kaur nor Gaurav Kumar provided any explanation regarding the allegations.
