<p> In a state where VIP registration numbers for vehicles, often dubbed vanity numbers, are sold for several lakhs in open auctions, a sitting Punjab minister on Thursday managed to get one such number for a mere Rs 22,000.<br /><br /></p>.<p>The minister, Sharanjit Singh Dhillon, who holds the PWD portfolio in the Parkash Singh Badal-led SAD-BJP alliance government in Punjab, had bid for the single-digit Punjab number 0006 for his new Mercedes car. The Punjab series number 0001 went down the hammer for a whopping Rs 4.5 lakh, while number 0002 fetched Rs 2.5 lakh. It appeared that the next numbers too would fetch huge money.<br /><br />Next up was the number 0006, for which there were only three bidders.<br /><br />Surprisingly, the reserve price for the number 0006 was Rs 10,000, and the bidding stopped at Rs 22,000 after a few counts. The minister bagged the number, but the entire process of auction raised many eyebrows.<br /><br />The process was allegedly not video graphed, which is a standard procedure during such auctions. A complaint too has been registered in this regard with the state transport commissioner. Authorities are defending the process saying that it was an open auction and the bid could not proceed beyond Rs 22,000.<br /><br />Only a few months ago at a similar auction in Punjab’s Hoshiarpur district, a farmer hailing from Katowal village paid Rs 7 lakh to grab a two-digit number (PB-07 AK-0047), and that too for his Honda Activa scooter. The farmer, Kulbir Singh, acquired the costly number for a vehicle that costs around Rs 53,000 only, said sources. <br /><br />During Thursday’s auction in Ludhiana, even the previous number series (0005) fetched Rs 1.5 lakh in the auction. What has perplexed people is the utter ease with which the minister successfully bid and bagged the number of his choice at a dirt-cheap price, that too in an open auction</p>
<p> In a state where VIP registration numbers for vehicles, often dubbed vanity numbers, are sold for several lakhs in open auctions, a sitting Punjab minister on Thursday managed to get one such number for a mere Rs 22,000.<br /><br /></p>.<p>The minister, Sharanjit Singh Dhillon, who holds the PWD portfolio in the Parkash Singh Badal-led SAD-BJP alliance government in Punjab, had bid for the single-digit Punjab number 0006 for his new Mercedes car. The Punjab series number 0001 went down the hammer for a whopping Rs 4.5 lakh, while number 0002 fetched Rs 2.5 lakh. It appeared that the next numbers too would fetch huge money.<br /><br />Next up was the number 0006, for which there were only three bidders.<br /><br />Surprisingly, the reserve price for the number 0006 was Rs 10,000, and the bidding stopped at Rs 22,000 after a few counts. The minister bagged the number, but the entire process of auction raised many eyebrows.<br /><br />The process was allegedly not video graphed, which is a standard procedure during such auctions. A complaint too has been registered in this regard with the state transport commissioner. Authorities are defending the process saying that it was an open auction and the bid could not proceed beyond Rs 22,000.<br /><br />Only a few months ago at a similar auction in Punjab’s Hoshiarpur district, a farmer hailing from Katowal village paid Rs 7 lakh to grab a two-digit number (PB-07 AK-0047), and that too for his Honda Activa scooter. The farmer, Kulbir Singh, acquired the costly number for a vehicle that costs around Rs 53,000 only, said sources. <br /><br />During Thursday’s auction in Ludhiana, even the previous number series (0005) fetched Rs 1.5 lakh in the auction. What has perplexed people is the utter ease with which the minister successfully bid and bagged the number of his choice at a dirt-cheap price, that too in an open auction</p>
