High Court orders CBI probe into ED letters alleging corruption at Punjab CM's officeਈਡੀ ਦੇ ਪੱਤਰਾਂ 'ਤੇ ਹਾਈ ਕੋਰਟ ਦਾ ਆਦੇਸ਼: ਪੰਜਾਬ ਸੀਐਮ ਦਫ਼ਤਰ ਵਿੱਚ ਭ੍ਰਿਸ਼ਟਾਚਾਰ ਦੇ ਦੋਸ਼ਾਂ ਦੀ ਹੋਵੇਗੀ ਸੀਬੀਆਈ ਜਾਂਚ

The Punjab and Haryana High Court on Monday ordered the Central Bureau of Investigation to probe the corruption allegations levelled in three letters that the Enforcement Directorate (ED) had written to the Punjab Director General of Police, and directed the agency to submit its report within two months.

The ruling marks a sharp escalation in a months-long standoff between the central agency and the Bhagwant Mann government. The ED had alleged that the Chief Minister's officer on special duty, Rajbir Singh Ghuman, and his associates Nitin Gohal and Bir Devinder were running a corruption network that interfered in government transfers, postings and tenders — charges the state government and the named individuals have denied.

What the ED letters alleged

The three letters, sent to DGP Gaurav Yadav on July 24, July 30 and August 7, sought the registration of a criminal case against Ghuman, Gohal and Devinder. The agency said its material, gathered under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, indicated the commission of cognisable offences including criminal conspiracy, corruption, unauthorised leakage of confidential government information, manipulation of policies and tenders, and illegal gratification.

According to the agency's filings, middlemen such as Gohal acted as a bridge between people seeking official favours and those close to the Chief Minister's office. Seized chats and devices purportedly show deals being struck over transfers and postings, Markfed tenders, licences and change-of-land-use approvals. Real estate businessman Ajay Sehgal and Suresh Kumar Bajaj are also named in the material.

The case grew out of the ED's money-laundering probe into the Rs 348-crore Sunteck City project, in which the agency says it seized documents, phones and nearly Rs 1 crore in cash during raids in May.

How the case reached the High Court

Punjab Police never registered an FIR on the ED's reference. Instead, it sought a legal opinion, while the agency kept writing. Advocate Nikhil Saraf then moved the High Court with a public interest petition arguing that the case must go to an agency "free from the influence of the Punjab Police and Punjab Vigilance" so the money trail could be properly investigated.

In August, the court described the charges as serious and sought the state's response. It reserved its order in September. During the hearings, the CBI raised no objection to taking up the investigation, while the Mann government opposed the plea and questioned the ED's motives. Last month, the Shiromani Akali Dal had also urged Governor Gulab Chand Kataria to recommend a time-bound, court-monitored CBI probe into what it called an organised corruption racket operating out of the Chief Minister's office.

Government and others react

Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann has earlier called the charges baseless. Nitin Gohal has denied the allegations, saying his chats were shown out of context. No court has held any of the named individuals guilty; a CBI probe is an investigation, not a verdict.

What did the High Court order on October 5?

The High Court ordered the CBI to take up the case arising from the ED's three letters to the Punjab DGP and to submit its investigation report within two months.

Who has been named in the ED's allegations?

CM Bhagwant Mann's OSD Rajbir Singh Ghuman and his associates Nitin Gohal and Bir Devinder are the principal names, with real estate businessman Ajay Sehgal and Suresh Kumar Bajaj also mentioned in the material.

Does a CBI probe mean anyone is guilty?

No. A probe ordered by a court is an investigation to establish facts; no one has been held guilty, and the named individuals have denied the allegations.