Rs 5 Cr Cash, Mercedes & 22 Luxury Watches: Punjab IPS Caught Under Bribe Scandal

Last Updated:October 17, 2025, 07:42 IST

The case was registered by the CBI on Thursday, following a written complaint submitted five days earlier by a scrap dealer called Akash Batta in Punjab's Fatehgarh Sahib.

The CBI has recovered approximately Rs 5 crore in cash (and counting) from premises linked to the arrested Punjab Police DIG Harcharan Singh Bhullar. (Image: PTI)

Punjab IPS officer Harcharan Singh Bhullar has landed in a big trouble after he was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in a corruption case that began with an alleged demand for Rs 8 lakh but has since revealed evidence of gigantic amount of unexplained wealth, including Rs 5 crore in cash, luxury vehicles, jewellery, and high-end watches.

Bhullar is a senior Indian Police Service (IPS) officer posted as Deputy Inspector General (DIG), Ropar Range in Punjab.

The CBI caught Bhullar red-handed in his Mohali office while accepting a bribe of ₹8 lakh after a trap was reportedly laid following a complaint.

The case was registered by the CBI on Thursday, following a written complaint submitted five days earlier by a scrap dealer called Akash Batta in Punjab’s Fatehgarh Sahib. As per the complainant, Batta alleged that the DIG had been threatening him to implicate him in a fabricated case unless he pays Rs 8 lakh as an initial bribe, followed by monthly “settlement" payments.

The investigative agency when raided premises linked to arrested Punjab Police DIG Harcharan Singh Bhullar recovered approximately Rs 5 crore in cash (and counting). In addition, officials seized about 1.5 kg of jewellery, property documents, and other assets in Punjab, including keys to two luxury vehicles (Mercedes and Audi), 22 luxury watches, locker keys, 40 litres of imported liquor, and firearms, comprising one double-barrel gun, one pistol, one revolver, and one airgun, along with ammunition.

According to the CBI’s FIR, Bhullar demanded that the payments be routed through his associate Krishna.

In order to verify the claims made by Batta, the CBI laid a trap in Chandigarh’s Sector 21 against the IPS officer. During the operation, Krishna was caught red-handed while accepting Rs 8 lakh from the complainant on behalf of the DIG.

Officials said that immediately after the handover, a controlled call was arranged between the complainant and the DIG, in which the officer acknowledged receipt of the payment and instructed both men to visit his office.

Following this, the CBI team traced DIG Bhullar to his office in Mohali and formally arrested both accused.

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