Vigilance Department arrests fake government official for taking bribe of lakhs

Vigilance Department arrests fake government official for taking bribe of lakhs

 Ludhiana, February 21, Jugraj Singh Sarhali 

 The government is continuously taking strict steps to check corruption in Punjab. Yesterday, the Vigilance Department arrested a fake government official Jagat Ram, a resident of Mullanpur, in Ludhiana, Punjab, on charges of taking Rs 42.60 lakh. According to the information received, the accused Jagat Ram used to get work done by claiming himself to be an officer of Ludhiana Improvement Trust (LIT) and taking money to get NOC. In this regard, SSP of Vigilance Department Ravinder Pal Singh Sandhu said that this case against the said accused was registered by the complainant Rakesh Sachdeva, a resident of S.B.S. Nagar, Pakhowal Road, Ludhiana has been registered on the basis of a complaint sent to the Chief Minister's Anti-Corruption Action Line. The complainant alleged that the said Jagat Ram had taken a bribe of Rs 42.60 lakh from him to get his pending No Objection Certificate (NOC) with the Ludhiana Improvement Trust (LIT). According to the complaint, Rakesh Sachdeva runs a clothing shop in AC Market, Ludhiana. He had purchased three properties under the LDP scheme of LIT in the years 2017, 2019 and 2022. He had submitted all the relevant documents to LIT to obtain NOC for transferring the properties in his name, but despite that, he did not get any certificate. Meanwhile, he met Jagat Ram who introduced himself as LIT. posed as an employee of the company and claimed to be the personal secretary of a senior officer in Chandigarh. The accused assured the complainant that he could arrange the NOC but in return he demanded a bribe. Sachdeva further stated that Jagat Ram took a total bribe of Rs 42.60 lakh from him in installments over two years but did not provide any NOC as promised.