Chandigarh: The Central Bureau of Investigation confirmed on Tuesday the arrest of three individuals connected to a major bribery scandal involving the Punjab Vigilance Bureau. The federal agency apprehended two alleged middlemen, Vikas Goyal and his son Raghav Goyal, alongside their associate Ankit Wadhwa. The arrests follow a sophisticated trap operation in Chandigarh where Wadhwa was reportedly caught accepting a bribe of ₹13 lakh and a high-end Samsung Galaxy Z Fold7 smartphone. While the intermediaries have been taken into custody, O.P. Rana, the Reader to the Director General of Vigilance in Punjab, managed to evade authorities and remains at large.
The case originated from a formal complaint by a Punjab State Tax Officer, who alleged that the Goyals demanded ₹20 lakh to ensure the closure of a pending vigilance inquiry against him. Investigations suggest the accused were acting as conduits for senior officials within the Vigilance Bureau, specifically O.P. Rana. During the verification process, the bribe demand was negotiated down from the original amount, with the addition of the luxury mobile phone allegedly intended for the absconding official.
The situation escalated during the attempted arrests when the suspects tried to flee. Following a high-speed chase, investigators intercepted Raghav and Vikas Goyal near the Ambala border between Punjab and Haryana. Interestingly, the private individuals were accompanied by Punjab Police gunmen armed with AK-47 rifles, whose role in the conspiracy is now being scrutinised. Despite the successful apprehension of the Goyals and their associate, Rana successfully fled the scene, prompting a widespread search by federal agents to track his whereabouts.
Subsequent raids at properties in Malout and Chandigarh resulted in the recovery of an additional ₹9 lakh in cash and various incriminating documents. The CBI has indicated that the probe is expanding to uncover a potentially larger network of illegal gratification and the unauthorised exchange of sensitive government information. The three arrested suspects are being produced before a designated court in Chandigarh as the agency continues its efforts to dismantle the corruption ring and locate the missing official.
