Former state DGP Sumedh Singh Saini was arrested by the Punjab Vigilance Bureau on Wednesday in a land fraud case.
As per information, Saini, went to the Vigilance Bureau office around 8:10 pm, on his own, saying he wanted to join investigation in a case in which he got interim anticipatory bail on August 13.
However, the Vigilance officers formally arrested him in another case of forgery in which he committed offence by stopping the process of attachment of a residence in Sector 20-D, Chandigarh. Saini claims that after retiring from his service, he stayed in the residence as a tenant for at least a year.
Saini had filed a motion with the HC on August 17, claiming that the VB was likely to arrest him in another case. The petition, however, was withdrawn by him.
Saini and six others were booked on August 2 by the Punjab Vigilance Bureau (VB) in corruption and disproportionate case filed at the Phase-I Vigilance Bureau police station in Mohali. On August 3, the VB team visited Saini’s Sector-20 house to arrest him following a registration of the FIR in an assets case. However, the bureau was unable to find him despite having credible information on Saini's whereabouts.
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The Land Fraud Case
· Sumedh Saini, according to reports was arrested on Wednesday in connection with a September 17, 2020 case. The case was registered at the vigilance bureau police station in Phase -1, Mohali under sections 420 (cheating), 467, 468 (forgery), 408 (breach of trust), and 120 (B) (criminal conspiracy).
· Devinder Singh Sandhu, director, WWICS Estate Private Ltd, Naginder Rao, general manager of WWICS, and Ashok Kumar Sikka (PCS Officer) were charged with forgery of documents related to a change of land use by WWICS in connivance with employees of the local bodies department in connection with the sale of land in Kurali.
· PWD XEN Nimratdeep Singh and his father Jaspal Singh were also named by the VB in the case. The VB stated that the money Jaspal received from the land sale was used to purchase the property in Sector 20 where Saini was residing.
· A fake rent agreement between Saini and Jaspal was displayed. Saini then bought the house and paid some money to Jaspal, according to the VB investigation.
· VB had attached Saini's house, but he had not been named in the case until now despite the fact that Jaspal and his son had been granted bail by the high court.
· This is the fourth FIR in which Mr Siani has been accused by the Punjab Police/Vigilance Bureau since his retirement as the Director-General of Police (DGP).
· Saini has stated that the Congress government is out to get him because he lodged cases against Amarinder Singh and his aide BS Chahal as vigilance chief during the previous SAD-BJP regime.
· As Head of the Vigilance Bureau, Saini had filed a case against Mr Bharat Inder Singh Chahal, the then Media Advisor of the current Chief Minister. Son of Bharat Inder Singh Chahal was enlisted in the rank of DSP as a sportsman, and because he is not a sportsman, a vigilance inquiry was initiated.
· Mr Chahal is also a political advisor to the State Chief Minister at present.
· “It is a case which has a political colour to it and instances of FIRs being lodged due to political vendetta are not known,” said Saini in his plea to the special court.