Dharamshala: Himachal Pradesh Vigilance Bureau has detained two people based on information In Rakkad (Kangra), Himachal Pradesh. The vigilance team has also recovered Rs 3.5 lakh from the possession of both. When they were questioned regarding the cash, both could not given the correct answers. Vigilance suspects that the accused must have taken bribe. Vigilance has registered case against both of them and started further investigation.
According to the Vigilance Bureau spokesperson , based on the secret information last evening, the vigilance team caught a Creta car number PB-04 -AG-2160 under the Rakkad police station in Kangra. Two persons, Rakesh Chawla, resident of New Flats GSS Complex Colony Faridkot, Punjab, and Puneet Kumar, resident of KC Road Colony, District Barnala, Punjab, were riding in it and Jaskaran Singh drove the car.
During the search vigilance team found 1.70 lakh cash from Rakesh Chawla’s chocolate brown colour suitcase. Cash was covered with the polythene bag. Professor Puneet Kumar’s maroon coloured suitcase was searched, Rs 1.80 lakh wrapped in a towel was recovered.
These bundles of currency notes had slips of Axis Bank Palampur branch attached to them. Investigation revealed that all this cash was withdrawn from the Axis Bank Palampur branch on 9 August itself.
When asked from where the 3.5 lakh cash came, they could not reveal the correct source. According to the Vigilance spokesperson, it has been noticed that, Both of them were deputed by the Pharmacy Council of India for inspection of the pharmacy institution. They had recently inspected the Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research at a university in the Palampur area.
There is a suspicion that they may have taken undue advantage of the concerned institute to provide illegal benefits. A case has been registered against both of them under Section 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act 1988 (amended in 2018) in the Dharamshala police station of Vigilance, and they were arrested in the case yesterday evening. Further investigation is underway.