Patiala: CBI raids property dealer’s house in connection with suspended DIG Harcharan Singh Bhullar case
Owner of BH properties, Bhupinder Singh is said to have close links with several senior politicians, bureaucrats and police officials based in Patiala and Chandigarh
PTC Web Desk: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is carrying out a raid at the residence of Bhupinder Singh, owner of BH Properties, in Patiala in connection with the ongoing probe against suspended Ropar Range DIG Harcharan Singh Bhullar, who was earlier arrested in a bribery case.
According to sources, the CBI team reached Bhupinder Singh’s residence early in the morning and conducted an extensive search operation, restricting entry and exit during the raid. Officials have not issued an official statement yet, but sources revealed that BH Properties’ name surfaced during Bhullar’s interrogation and from documents recovered during earlier searches.
BH Properties is a well-known real estate consultancy firm with multiple projects across Patiala and Mohali. Bhupinder Singh is said to have close links with several senior politicians, bureaucrats and police officials based in Patiala and Chandigarh.
The raid took place a day after a Mohali court dismissed as “infructuous” a petition filed by the Punjab Vigilance Bureau (VB) seeking the production warrant of DIG Harcharan Singh Bhullar in a disproportionate assets case. The CBI had termed the VB’s move an “attempt to obstruct its investigation.”
Bhullar, who was already in judicial custody, was shown as “formally arrested” by the VB on October 31 in the same case at Burail Jail, Chandigarh.
The CBI arrested DIG Bhullar on October 16 in a Rs 8 lakh bribery case. During follow-up raids at his home and other premises, investigators recovered Rs 7.5 crore in cash, 2.5 kg of gold jewellery, 26 luxury watches, two high-end vehicles, 100 litre of liquor and documents related to 50 immovable properties.
Bhullar’s lawyer has, however, contested the allegations, asserting that the recovered valuables were part of his ancestral assets. So far, four cases have been registered against the suspended officer under various provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act, Excise Act, and two separate disproportionate assets FIRs , one by the CBI and another by the Punjab Vigilance Bureau.