PATNA: Corrupt public servants in Bihar may face tougher action as the State Vigilance Investigation Bureau (VIB) has decided to constitute two new cells to expedite corruption cases in the New Year 2026.
The two new cells of the anti-corruption wing are aimed at ensuring swift trials and quicker convictions. While one cell will focus on speedy trials, the second will deal exclusively with departmental proceedings.
Director General of the VIB, Jitendra Singh Gangwar, told the media on Wednesday that the first cell would oversee the entire legal process, from filing charge sheets to conducting fast-track hearings, recording witness testimonies and pursuing court proceedings.
The second cell will be responsible for obtaining no-objection certificates from the concerned departments to prosecute corrupt government employees. Both cells will function under the supervision of an officer of Inspector General (IG) rank.
“The bureau will focus primarily on securing convictions of those accused of corruption in 2026. Our crackdown on corrupt public servants will intensify in the New Year,” Gangwar said.
He also shared details of VIB’s performance in 2025. According to him, action was initiated in 122 corruption cases during the year, including 101 trap cases in which officials were caught red-handed while accepting bribes. In addition, 15 cases related to disproportionate assets and seven cases involving misuse of official position were registered.
Gangwar said that over the past 25 years, the VIB had registered an average of 72–73 FIRs annually, but this figure rose sharply to around 122 in 2025. He added that the highest number of FIRs, 20, were registered in December 2025 alone, compared with 15 FIRs during the entire year of 2024, indicating a significant increase in enforcement action.
In 2025, as many as 101 FIRs were registered in trap cases, with 107 corrupt public servants caught red-handed. This included seven women officers and six middlemen.
Gangwar said that August 27, 2025, marked a first in the history of the Vigilance Bureau, with four separate trap operations conducted simultaneously across different districts. Additionally, two more trap cases and one disproportionate assets case were registered on December 17, 2025.
He noted that while only two disproportionate assets cases were registered in 2024, the number rose to 15 in 2025. The largest case involved an executive engineer of the Building Construction Department, who allegedly possessed assets worth Rs 2.74 crore disproportionate to his known sources of income. Cases were also registered against four officials from the Revenue and Land Reforms Department, three from the Rural Works Department and two from the Police Department.
The VIB chief added that the pace of investigation and disposal of pending cases against public servants has also improved significantly.