SRINAGAR: The brother of J&K Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Choudhary, Vijay Singh Choudhary, a police inspector, has been booked by the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) in a disproportionate assets case. Raids were conducted at his properties in Jammu and Rajouri on Wednesday. The Deputy Chief Minister has termed the ACB case against his brother as “revenge-driven,” alleging that instead of granting him a promotion, raids were carried out.
An official said that acting on specific inputs, the ACB conducted a verification into allegations that Vijay Singh Choudhary, Inspector, J&K Police, resident of Nonial, Nowshera, in Rajouri district, possessed huge disproportionate assets.
“It revealed that while posted in different places, Vijay raised assets amounting to crores of rupees, which were found to be highly disproportionate to his known sources of income,” the official said. “It was found that more than 10 properties in the form of houses, shops, and plots of land measuring 100 kanals, valued in crores, have been acquired by him, mostly in the names of family members, relatives, and others.”
The official said that based on the verification conducted, a case of criminal misconduct under FIR No. 02/2026 was registered at P/S ACB Central, and an investigation was initiated.
“Searches were conducted by ACB teams at various locations, including his residential house at Santokh Vihar, Kaluchak, Jammu; another residence at Nonial, Nowshera, Rajouri; business premises, including a stone crusher and tile factory at Tutte-di-Khui, Bajalta, Jammu; and other locations in Jammu,” the official said.
During the searches, incriminating documents were recovered, and further investigation is underway, the official added.
Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Choudhary, while defending his brother, said the action was driven by revenge.
“They have given this as an award and promotion to a police officer who, during his career, fought militancy in Gursai, Poonch, Thanamandi, Surankote, Doda, and Supwal. He consistently took on militants and criminals and built a reputation for confronting them wherever he was posted,” Choudhary said.
“When it was time for his promotion, instead of granting it, they sent the ACB to raid his house. They conducted the raid today to stop his promotion, as he was due to be promoted to the rank of Deputy Superintendent of Police (DySP),” he claimed.
Alleging police rivalry, the Deputy Chief Minister said, “It is wrong on the part of the police officers who are behind this. Such actions will demoralise officers who want to work honestly.”
Terming the ACB raids an attempt to “intimidate and malign” his family, he said, “We are not afraid. We know who we are and what we stand for. The truth will ultimately prevail.”
“We will fight it legally. We have faith in India’s judiciary and in the good officers of Jammu and Kashmir who will ensure justice,” the Deputy Chief Minister added.