CHANDIGARH: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has asked the Punjab Government to hand over all records relating to cases of alleged influence-peddling for the postings of government officials, including IAS and IPS officers, tenders and favourable policies, cited in the 251-page First Information Report (FIR) registered against Rajbir Singh Ghuman, Officer on Special Duty (OSD) to Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann, last week. The Supreme Court had earlier barred the investigating agency from taking coercive action against Ghuman.
Sources said that, in a letter to the state government, the CBI sought files relating to all counts of alleged corruption and influence-peddling in various departments, asking that these be provided at the earliest.
Accordingly, the Personnel Department on Tuesday wrote to the administrative heads concerned, asking them to submit the records to the CBI office in Chandigarh within the next two days.
An officer, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the heads of these departments had also received separate communications from CBI officials, citing the FIR registered against the OSD and five others and asking them to submit the records by Wednesday through an officer who could assist the CBI in its investigation.
The cases cited in the FIR, registered under Sections 120-B of the IPC, 61(2) of the BNS and Sections 7, 7A, 8 and 12 of the Prevention of Corruption Act, relate to the Home Affairs, Revenue, Food and Supplies, Local Government, Animal Husbandry, Cooperation, Housing, Personnel, Power, Jails, Health, General Administration, Rural Development and Panchayats, Science and Technology, and Forests departments.
Last week, the CBI registered a case against Ghuman and five others, including Nitin Gohal, Jitin Gohal, Romi Raja Mahajan, Rajdeep Singh Nagra and Bir Devinder Singh, following the directions of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, which had ordered a probe into allegations of corruption involving public officials.
The case concerns alleged payments in exchange for postings, favourable policy decisions and tenders. The agency subsequently conducted searches at multiple locations, including the Punjab Chief Minister’s camp office in Chandigarh. The agency also summoned Ghuman three times to appear before it, but he allegedly failed to comply.
The Punjab Government challenged the Punjab and Haryana High Court’s order in the Supreme Court, questioning the direction for a CBI probe.
On October 12, the Supreme Court issued notice to the CBI on the state government’s plea but declined to stay the FIR. It directed that no coercive steps be taken against Ghuman while the matter remained pending and also directed the state government to cooperate with the probe.
