Sidhu Moosewala’s mother’s IVF treatment: Show cause notice issued to Punjab principal secretary for health

The Punjab government has issued a show cause notice to the principal secretary for health for not taking up the issue of IVF treatment availed by the mother of slain singer Sidhu Moosewala with the chief minister and the health minister. The government has asked principal secretary for health, Ajoy Sharma, to show cause within two weeks as to why proceedings should not be initiated against him under the All India Services (Discipline and Appeal) Rules, 1969. 

"Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India, sought a report from you regarding IVF treatment of Charan Kaur (Sidhu Moosewala's mother). In light of the provisions of Rules of Business, 1992 and given the significance of the issue involved, you were required to bring it to the notice of your minister-in-charge and chief minister and take their orders regarding further course of action," the notice stated, adding that principal secretary proceeded to act in the matter without bringing it to the notice of the minister-in-charge and the CM, and without taking any orders from them. 

"This is a serious lapse on your part. Hence, you are asked to show cause within two weeks as to why proceedings under the All India Services (Discipline and Appeal) Rules, 1969 should not be initiated against you," it further said.

Meanwhile, Sidhu Moosewala’s father Balkaur Singh has accused the Punjab government of harassing him over the birth of his second son. 

The entire saga started after the couple opted for the In-Vitro Fertilisation (IVF) method to conceive their second son. Moosewala's father is aged around 60 while mother Charan Kaur is 58 years old. However, under the Assisted Reproductive Technology (Regulation) Act, 2021, the age limit prescribed for a woman is between 21-50 years.

The Union Health Ministry wrote to the state government on March 14 seeking details of Kaur’s IVF treatment. The health ministry also asked the Punjab government to submit a report on the same. 

Balkaur Singh and wife Charan Kaur welcomed a baby boy on March 17, nearly two years after Shubhdeep Singh Sidhu alias Sidhu Moosewala was shot dead in Punjab's Mansa district