Chandigarh: Punjab Police DIG Harcharan Singh Bhullar, arrested in a bribery case, remains lodged in Chandigarh’s Burail jail, where he is living like an ordinary prisoner. According to jail sources, no family member has visited him so far.
Bhullar reportedly sleeps on a mattress laid on the floor with a pillow and sheet and eats the same meals as other inmates — vegetables and roti for dinner, tea and bread for breakfast, and dal, rice and rotis for lunch.
Meanwhile, an FIR has been registered against Bhullar in Samrala, Ludhiana, under sections 61, 1 and 14 of the Excise Act after the CBI raided his farmhouse in Bondli and recovered 108 liquor bottles and 17 live cartridges worth ₹2.89 lakh.
According to sources, the CBI has found crucial evidence that has drawn the attention of other central agencies, including the Enforcement Directorate (ED).
The agency is reportedly planning to widen the probe’s scope, and at least eight senior police officers across three districts are likely to be questioned.
The investigation began after Bhullar’s associate, identified as Krishna, was caught on October 16 in Chandigarh’s Sector 21 while accepting a bribe of ₹8 lakh from a scrap dealer, Akash Batra, of Mandi Gobindgarh. The CBI team then arrested DIG Bhullar red-handed. Krishna is alleged to have acted as Bhullar’s middleman in arranging bribes.
On Friday, both Bhullar and Krishna were produced before a Chandigarh Special CBI Court and remanded to 14 days of judicial custody. Following the arrest, the Punjab government has suspended DIG Bhullar.
