Two Gazetted officers nabbed by vigilance bureau for accepting bribe
Kanwar Inder singh/ royalpatiala.in News/ May 5,2025
In a major crackdown under the zero-tolerance policy against corruption spearheaded by Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann led Punjab Government, the Punjab Vigilance Bureau (VB) on Monday nabbed Balkar Singh, posted as Superintendent, in Block Development and Panchayats Office, Amloh, in Fatehgarh Sahib district and Satnam Singh, Superintendent at the Block Development and Panchayats Office (BDPO), Verka Block, Rani-Ka-Bagh, Amritsar,red handed while demanding and accepting a bribe
Disclosing this here today, an official spokesperson of the State VB said the accused was apprehended following a complaint lodged by a Sarpanch of Fatehgarh Sahib district.
The complainant has informed the VB that he had done mining on village Shamlat land during his tenure as Sarpanch and his case was pending with ADC Fatehgarh Sahib. He alleged that the above said accused has demanded the bribe to help him in resolving his case.
The spokesperson further added that following a verification of the complaint, the VB flying squad team laid a trap and apprehended the accused red-handed while he was receiving the bribe of Rs 60,000 from the complainant in the presence of two official witnesses. In this regard a case under the Prevention of Corruption Act has been registered against the accused at the VB Police Station Flying Squad-1, Punjab at Mohali. He would be produced before the competent court tomorrow and further investigations into this case was under progress, he said.
In another case, VB informed that the arrested accused has been identified as Satnam Singh, Superintendent at the Block Development and Panchayats Office (BDPO), Verka Block, Rani-Ka-Bagh, Amritsar, who had demanded a bribe of Rs 60,000 from a resident of village Nabipur, district Amritsar in exchange for official action on an encroachment complaint.
He further added that the complainant had informed that he had submitted a complaint to the BDPO Verka, Lakhwinder Kaur, concerned the illegal occupation of the approach road to his residence by his neighbour Gurwinder Singh. The BDPO had marked the matter to the said Superintendent, who in turn instructed Junior Engineer Mohit Kumar and Panchayat Secretary Ashok Kumar to verify the facts.
The verification revealed that the encroachment on government land was genuine, leading to a penalty of Rs 3,284 being imposed. Despite repeated notices, the encroacher failed to comply, prompting the BDPO office to request police assistance to remove the illegal structures.
However, instead of proceeding with due legal action, Superintendent Satnam Singh had demanded Rs 50,000 to “facilitate” further steps, instructing the complainant to pay Rs 20,000 as an advance. The complainant transferred Rs 10,000 via Google Pay to Satnam Singh’s account. Subsequently, the illegal pillars were removed with police assistance.
Further retaliation by the neighbour, who blocked the village drainage, led the complainant to approach the accused again. Satnam Singh reportedly told the complainant to stay silent about the bribe or risk further inaction regarding the drainage issue.
The VB verified all facts before registering a case under the Prevention of Corruption Act against Satnam Singh at the VB Police Station, Range Amritsar. He would be presented before the competent court tomorrow. The role of BDPO Lakhwinder Kaur is under scrutiny and would be investigated further, the spokesperson added.
Two Gazetted officers nabbed by vigilance bureau for accepting bribe. The Punjab Vigilance Bureau reaffirmed its zero tolerance policy against corruption and urged citizens to actively report any instances of bribery or misconduct by government officials. “The Chief Minister’s Anti-Corruption Action Line is a weapon in the hands of the people. We call upon all citizens to come forward without fear. Timely reporting leads to timely action,” the VB stated.
