Chandigarh, Oct. 31 -- The Punjab government on Thursday removed senior IAS officer AK Sinha from the post of chairman-cum-managing director (CMD) of Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) and Punjab State Power Transmission Corporation Limited, appointing Basant Garg, a 2005-batch IAS officer, as the new head of both state power utilities.

Sinha, a 1996-batch IAS officer who is set to retire early next year, has not been given any posting and has been directed to report to the department of personnel.

According to top officials, privy to development, the move comes at the behest of the power and industry minister Sanjeev Arora, who is close to the party high command and is considered an influential minister in the Bhagwant Mann...