The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has arrested three people in bribery case linked to officials of Punjab Vigilance Bureau and the said case involves an alleged demand of Rs 20 lakh to close a complaint pending with Vigilance Department.
According to CBI the case was registered after a complaint was filed by a Punjab State Tax Officer and the complainant alleged that accused Vikas alias Vicky Goyal and his son Raghav Goyal demanded money in exchange for helping close a vigilance complaint against him and CBI also said the accused claimed they were acting as middlemen for senior Vigilance officials including O.P. Rana, who was working as Reader to DGP Vigilance Punjab and the complainant was allegedly assured that the matter would be settled after payment of the bribe amount.
During verification CBI found preliminary evidence supporting the bribery allegations and officials said original demand of Rs 20 lakh was later reduced to Rs 13 lakh along with a Samsung Galaxy Z Fold7 mobile phone allegedly meant for O.P. Rana following which a trap operation was conducted by CBI in Chandigarh on May 11, 2026 during which accused Ankit Wadhwa was allegedly caught while accepting Rs 13 lakh cash and the mobile phone from the complainant on behalf of other accused. The cash and phone were recovered by the agency.
The CBI further stated that during the operation accused Raghav Goyal, Vikas alias Vicky Goyal and O.P. Rana allegedly tried to flee after reportedly being alerted by gunmen present near the spot and after a chase Raghav Goyal, Vikas Goyal and two gunmen were caught near Ambala at Punjab-Haryana border however O.P. Rana is still absconding and efforts are being made to arrest him.
According to the investigating agency the probe so far shows prima facie involvement of O.P. Rana in the alleged conspiracy and searches were also carried out at houses of the accused in Malout and Chandigarh and during these searches CBI recovered Rs 9 lakh cash and some documents related to the investigation.
The agency also said that sensitive information related to pending vigilance matters was allegedly being shared between O.P. Rana and private accused and CBI is now investigating whether there was a larger illegal gratification network and whether more people were involved.
The role of Punjab Police gunmen attached to private accused is also under investigation and CBI said the gunmen were carrying AK-47 rifles and officials are examining why police security was provided to accused private individuals.
All arrested accused will be produced before the designated court in Chandigarh and further investigation in the case is continuing meanwhile Punjab Vigilance Bureau issued a statement saying that a private individual has been caught by CBI and investigation is still going on and the bureau said that if the name of any official from department comes up during the investigation it will fully cooperate with CBI and allow law to take its course.