The Punjab Vigilance Bureau, on Wednesday, arrested two of its police employees accused of defrauding 102 individuals under the guise of promising jobs. Both officers allegedly extorted around 2.6 million Rupees by capitalizing on the vacant positions at Punjab Police.
The spokesperson for the Vigilance Authority stated that the culprits were nabbed following an investigation into a complaint lodged by Surinder Singh, a resident of Nangalan village in Garhshankar, through the Chief Minister's Anti-Corruption Action Line portal.
The arrested individuals have been identified as Tarlochan Pal, a cleaner with the Third IRB (India Reserve Battalion), and Surindpal, a barber at the Punjab Police Academy in Phillaur. Tarlochan hails from Jalandhar, while Surindpal is from Karnal’s Seekri village in Haryana.
Charges Proven Accurate in Investigation
Initial inquiry validated the charges made by the complainant, leading to the registration of a fraud case against both accused. During the scrutiny, it was uncovered that the culprits falsely assured victims of the upcoming recruitment for nearly 560 vacancies for Grade-IV positions in the Punjab Police.
26 Lakh Extorted from 102 People: Vigilance Spokesperson
The spokesperson detailed that each individual was asked to pay 25,000 Rupees for securing their job, amounting to a substantial sum collected from people across the state. The duo has been charged under sections 420 (fraud), 120B (criminal conspiracy) of the IPC, and section 7 of the Prevention of Corruption Act.
