Jalandhar: Vigilance investigation has made shocking revelations regarding the corruption scandal in the Municipal Corporation. Vigilance has made the case even more serious by adding sections 238 (destruction of evidence) and 308-2 (extortion) of BNS in this big game of corruption.
According to Vigilance, Municipal Corporation’s ATP Sukhdev Vashisht had prepared 340 files in his 22-month tenure, but only 74 have been recovered so far. The remaining 266 files are alleged to have been destroyed deliberately so that the network related to illegal construction could be saved.
The investigation report states that MLA Raman Arora, his son Rajan Arora, Samadhi Raju Madan, close aide Mahesh Makhija, Corporation’s woman inspector Harpreet Kaur and ATP Sukhdev, among others, were running a recovery network. This gang first threatened the building owners by sending them notices and then extorted a huge amount by threatening to demolish the building. So far, Vigilance has received statements of many victims and forensic investigation of call details and mobile is going on. It is being told that call recordings of XEN and SDO who are in contact with the MLA are also being investigated.
In this case, Rajan Arora, son of MLA Raman Arora, named in the case, has got interim bail from the High Court. However, the court has put a condition that Rajan Arora will have to cooperate in the investigation, failing which the bail can be cancelled. The next hearing of the case is scheduled for September 24. Along with this, the regular bail petition of ATP Sukhdev, who is in jail, will be heard on August 27.
The defense argued in the court that Rajan Arora’s firm ‘Balaji Textiles’ had borrowed Rs 60 lakh from Kaya Trends, a Surat-based company, out of which Rs 40 lakh has already been returned. Kaya Trends has also sent the information of this transaction to Vigilance through email, which has been recorded in the court.
It is worth noting that on May 14, ATP Sukhdev Vashishth was caught as the first arrest in this scam. After this, MLA Raman Arora, his close aide Mahesh Makhija and Corporation Inspector Harpreet Kaur have also been arrested. In this case, the regular bail petition of MLA Raman Arora has already been rejected by the local court, while the anticipatory bail of his Samadhi Raju Madan has also been rejected by the court.
