SC Commission Summons Roster Team Over Massive Promotion Fraud in Punjab Health Department

Punjab State Commission for Scheduled Castes Chairman Sardar Jasvir Singh Garhi has launched a decisive crackdown following a complaint from the Multipurpose Health Worker (Male) cadre of the Health and Family Welfare Department, summoning Roster Checking Team No. 22 to appear before the commission on April 29. The directive comes after a preliminary investigation unearthed systematic violations of reservation policies, where the commission had initially sought a verified roster register from the concerned department to scrutinize promotions from Multipurpose Health Worker (Male) to Multipurpose Health Worker Supervisor (Male) spanning the last 15 years. While department officials submitted a 12-year record verified by Welfare Department Roster Checking Team No. 22 on November 27, 2025—following a request on November 21—the subsequent audit by roster experts revealed a shocking disregard for constitutional mandates.

The investigation exposed that one physically disabled employee and eight personnel from the General Category were fraudulently listed as Scheduled Caste candidates, while details for 19 General Category employees promoted during this period were missing entirely from the records. Out of 374 total promotions, 75 posts were designated under the 20 percent SC reservation quota; however, 69 of these reserved slots were found to be occupied by General Category employees in a blatant defiance of established regulations. Chairman Garhi noted that the department failed to uphold the Seniority-cum-Merit principle and ignored various court rulings, Welfare Department circulars, and the Reservation Acts of 2006 and 2018.

In response to these grave irregularities, Chairman Garhi has ordered the personal appearance of Roster Checking Team No. 22 members, including Superintendent Vishwanath, Superintendent Resham Singh, and Senior Assistant Gagandeep Kaur Sandhu, alongside Health Department Superintendent Toshpinder Singh and the Director of the Health Department. Issuing a stern warning, Chairman Garhi asserted that any infringement upon the constitutional rights of SC employees would not be tolerated and that those responsible for such negligence would face prosecution under the SC/ST Prevention of Atrocities Act 1989 and the Principal Secretary’s letter dated July 9, 2009. Furthermore, the commission will review the compliance of previous directives issued to the Director of the Welfare Department regarding the organization of legal workshops for roster committees, ensuring that the erosion of SC rights in Punjab's administrative machinery is met with absolute accountability.