High Court Refers ED’s Corruption Complaint to CBI
The Punjab and Haryana High Court has shifted a controversy surrounding alleged misuse of power by officials attached to Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). The referral follows a chain of letters dispatched by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to Punjab’s Director General of Police, Gaurav Yadav, urging immediate action.
Petition background
Advocate Nikhil Saraf filed a Public Interest Litigation after the state police allegedly ignored the ED’s three separate communications. The letters sought an FIR against the chief minister’s Officer on Special Duty, Rajbir Singh Ghuman, and several others accused of influencing government transfers, postings, tenders and related administrative decisions.
CBI instructed to lodge FIR and report
A division bench headed by Chief Justice Ashwani Kumar Mishra and Justice Rohit Kapoor ordered the CBI to register a criminal case and launch a comprehensive investigation. The agency must file a detailed status report with the court within two months, and the bench instructed the Punjab government and police to provide full cooperation.
PIL sparked by police inaction
The petition contends that the Punjab police’s refusal to act on the ED’s letters left the PIL as the sole recourse for an independent probe. The ED’s concerns surfaced amid an ongoing money‑laundering inquiry, where it flagged possible involvement of private intermediaries and individuals close to the chief minister’s office in steering official decisions.
Political fallout
The ruling Aam Aadmi Party has dismissed the allegations as politically motivated, accusing central agencies of being weaponised against the state government. Chief Minister Mann has likewise branded the claims as baseless. With the High Court now assigning the matter to the CBI, the investigation will proceed at the central level, and the stipulated two‑month deadline sets a clear timetable for the next phase.
