Panjab University to scrutinise finances of Jhankar festival after alleged irregularities

Panjab University (PU) officials have decided to scrutinise the finances used in organising the Jhankar fest after the DSW visited the fest and noticed discrepancies along with the students alleging the same.

The fest concluded on Friday night with a star night and a performance by Punjabi singer Ninja at Law Ground.

The fest was organised by PU Campus Student Council (PUCSC) president Jatinder Singh. Due to the imposition of the model code of conduct, Singh had to get special permission to host the function. The permission was granted on the first day of the event in the morning.

Dean of Students Welfare (DSW) Amit Chauhan visited the fest on the very first day during the evening and reportedly found some irregularities. A response regarding this was sought from Jatinder.

The DSW sent a letter to Jatinder asking why despite the approval of a quotation of ₹5.4 lakh for three nights, no sound, lights and stage were set at the law ground. He has also been advised to note all the payments so that the vendor can be paid accordingly.

Students also shared reels and posts on social media, showing how some of the events in Jhankar were not up to the mark. Organisers, on the other hand, on Wednesday, had defended themselves by attributing the poor show to the concurrent Holi celebrations along with other events going on.

Chauhan said that he has advised to schedule a meeting of organisers after Holi on Tuesday. This will scrutinise and approve the detailed bills of the fest and by Wednesday an audit into this can start and can be finished by the end of the financial year on March 31.

Regarding the allegations, Jatinder maintained that there was nothing wrong on his part and said, “As per my quote there was no rule that an equal amount of money had to be spent each day. All funds have been used properly and I will show this to the purchase committee,” he said.

ABVP holds protest against alleged corruption in Jhankar

Meanwhile, Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) also held a protest outside the DSW office on Friday against Jatinder Singh and his party, National Students’ Union of India (NSUI), alleging that items in the quotation approved by the DSW were seen nowhere on ground. They demanded that no more funds be given to the NSUI and the president who were allegedly extorting funds from the university.

The DSW has added two of the protesting members to the purchase committee and they will be present for the meeting to be held later. ABVP PU president, who is also one of the committee members, Rajat Puri said, ”We will not tolerate any such corruption and the PUCSC president should resign for such mismanagement of the fest.”