VB Apprehends Excise Officer Balbir Kumar Virdi’s Accomplice Bhagwant Bhushan Bawa

Chandigarh: The Punjab Vigilance Bureau (VB) made a significant arrest of Bhagwant Bhushan alias Bawa po, a resident of Krishna Nagar, Railway Road Jalandhar, who has been involved in a case of disproportionate assets registered against Balbir Kumar Virdi, Joint Director (GST), Excise Department Jalandhar, a resident of village Lamba Pind Jalandhar. This case had been filed against Virdi, for amassing assets beyond his known sources of income while serving as a government official.

     Disclosing this here today a VB spokesperson, said an investigation has revealed that during the check period from 01.04.2007 to 11.09.2020, Balbir Kumar Virdi declared an income of Rs. 2,08,84,863.37, but astonishingly he spent Rs. 5,12,51,688.37 during the same period. This discrepancy shows an excess expenditure of Rs. 3,03,66,825, a startling 145.40 percent more than his actual income. Consequently, the VB has registered a corruption case against him for misusing his position and accumulating assets significantly surpassing his lawful income, under FIR No. 12 dated 16.05.2023, under sections 13(1)(b) and 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, at VB Range Jalandhar.

      Furthermore, the investigation uncovered Bhagwant Bhushan’s role as a special partner in establishing ‘Jagdambey Lifestyle’ firm in Ludhiana, along with ‘Clean and Cool,’ firm Ludhiana owned by his wife, Kavita, and Balbir Kumar Virdi’s spouse, Surinder Kaur. Bhagwant Bhushan has been nominated in the process of laundering the alleged black money amounting to crores on behalf of Balbir Kumar Virdi through these bogus firms.

     He further informed that the records indicate that Bhagwant Bhushan made a payment of Rs. 10,00,000 for a lift installed at Kothi No. 213, Guru Gobind Singh Nagar, Jalandhar, belonging to Balbir Kumar Virdi, using funds from his Jagdambey Lifestyle Ludhiana in the account of Schindler India Pvt. Similarly, a payment of Rs. 3,18,600 for a generator installed at Virdi’s residence, was transacted by Bhagwant Bhushan’s Jagdambey Lifestyle Company in the account of Sudhir Power Limited, Ludhiana. He informed that in light of his involvement, Bhagwant Bhushan was apprehended today and has been named in the aforementioned case.

      The spokesperson further stated that the VB is conducting intensive raids at residences and other hideouts to apprehend Balbir Kumar Virdi, who would be taken into custody soon. In this case his bail application has already been rejected by the Jalandhar district court and he is on the run.

     It is important to note that Balbir Kumar Virdi, along with several transports and industry proprietors, has been implicated in misappropriating GST collections. In this regard a FIR No. 09 dated 21.08.2020 has already been registered under sections 420, 465, 467, 468, 471, 120-B and under sections 7 and 7-A of Prevention of Corruption Act at VB Police Station, Flying Squad-1, SAS Nagar Mohali. Pursuant to the orders of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, Balbir Kumar Virdi has joined the investigation in this case.