Chandigarh, Aug 6 (PTI) With the Opposition raising eyebrows over a "gaushala" allegedly registered in Punjab Health Minister Balbir Singh Sidhu's Mohali address getting over 10 acres of prime land, the Congress leader hit back at his opponents on Friday, saying they are trying to "politicise" even social work.

The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) has demanded a CBI probe into the leasing of prime "shamlat land" (village common land) worth Rs 100 crore to a trust, which the party claimed is headed by Sidhu.

Also Read | Realme GT Explorer Master Edition Suitcase Orange Colour Variant Leaked Ahead of its India Launch.

The Opposition has alleged that the land belonging to a village panchayat in Mohali has been allotted on lease for 33 years to the Bal Gopal Gau Welfare Society, which they claim is registered at the minister's private residence.

It has also alleged that the land has been leased at a much lower rate than the prevailing market rate.

Also Read | JEE-Main 2021 Results Announced, 17 Candidates Score 100 Percentile in 3rd Edition of Engineering Entrance Exam.

Sidhu dismissed the allegation levelled against him as totally baseless.

"These are baseless allegations and only for vested political interests as they (Opposition) do not have any issue to raise," he was quoted as saying in a statement.

Sidhu said the "gaushala" (cow shelter) is dedicated to the well-being of abandoned bovines and it is not run for commercial purposes.

"If anyone wants to know the purpose, he may visit the site to see the commercial activities going on there," the Mohali MLA said.

Hitting out at the allegations levelled by the Opposition, he said, "Did we make any mistake by constructing a gaushala? I had made a commitment to the people of Mohali that I would make this city free from stray animals so that road accidents could be prevented and precious lives of innocent people as well as animals can be saved."

He said all the trustees of the Bal Gopal Gau Welfare Society are renowned industrialists and prominent citizens of Mohali, whose main motive is the well-being of abandoned bovines and to provide a shelter for cows.

General secretary of the society Naresh Kansal said he, along with the other trustees, has been working tirelessly for the last four years to provide better facilities and shelter to the stray and abandoned cows of the area.

They were earlier managing the Municipal Corporation Gaushala in 2017-18 but were facing various challenges.

Kansal claimed that the people of Mohali were constantly raising the demand of a "gaushala" with more space and modern facilities and had approached the state health minister to help them get land on lease for the purpose and had also requested him to lead the society.

Anurag Aggarwal, a trustee of the society, said an amount of more than Rs 1 crore has so far been invested to construct the cow shed. The money has been donated by the trustees or raised from people through voluntary donations, he added.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)