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Chandigarh, Nov 4 (IANS) A Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) team on Tuesday searched the house of BH Properties owner and realtor Bhupinder Singh over his suspicious links with Punjab Police DIG Harcharan Singh Bhullar. Bhullar has been arrested on charges of taking bribe of Rs 5 lakh and amassing disproportionate assets.
It is learned that Bhupinder Singh’s name cropped up during the interrogation of Bhullar, who is currently in judicial custody and the agency has recovered some documents.
The owner of BH Properties is believed to have deep connections with many top politicians, officials and policemen.
A day earlier, a Mohali city court had rejected as “futile” an application by the State Vigilance Bureau seeking a production warrant against Bhullar, who is suspended in a disproportionate assets case, while the CBI called it an “attempt to thwart its investigation”.
“Since both the agencies require custodial interrogation, this issue can be resolved by allowing the Vigilance Bureau to interrogate the accused after the police remand granted by the Special Court, Chandigarh is over and when the accused is no longer required by the other agency (CBI),” the Mohali court said.
“For the time being, the application is dismissed as frivolous as circumstances have changed since the filing of the present application.”
The CBI had arrested Bhullar, who served as Ropar Range DIG, on October 16 along with “middleman” Krishnau Sharda for accepting a bribe of Rs 5 lakh from scrap dealer Akash Batta, who is also the complainant.
Sharda was arrested in Chandigarh, while minutes later DIG Bhullar was arrested from his office in Mohali.
During searches at Bhullar’s residence in Chandigarh, the CBI seized cash worth over Rs 7.36 crore, jewelery worth over Rs 2.32 crore, 26 branded and expensive watches, besides documents of around 50 immovable properties in the name of family members.
Based on the complaint of Inspector Sonal Mishra, an additional FIR was registered against DIG Bhullar for amassing disproportionate assets.
The CBI said the complaint details allegations related to a previous case, where Bhullar was arrested for demanding and accepting an illegal bribe of Rs 5 lakh. The CBI seized documents which include documents of acquisition of about 150 acres of agricultural land in Mohali, Hoshiarpur and Ludhiana besides two properties and commercial properties in Chandigarh.
The complaint alleges that the recovery of these assets, which are disproportionate to his known sources of income, prima facie suggests that Bhullar enriched himself illegally during the provisional investigation period of August 1 to October 17. The CBI found that, as per the income tax return filed by Bhullar for assessment year 2024-25, his total declared annual income from all known sources is Rs 45.95 lakh.
However, the FIR states that the value of the recovered property and properties belonging to his family is estimated to be several crores of rupees.
–IANS
GG/VD