Arrested MLA Raman Arora’s inner circle on radar, aide Madaan on the run

Four days since the arrest of Jalandhar Central AAP MLA Raman Arora, Vigilance Bureau teams in Jalandhar have expanded their ambit from building branch of the Municipal Corporation to other branches of the civic body.

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The VB teams from Jalandhar, Ludhiana and Mohali have started verification of files of the B&R and O&M branches of the Municipal Corporation too and have started zeroing in on the works that had been allotted to Arora's favourite contractor. The list of all works allotted to this contractor in the Jalandhar Central Assembly segment has been prepared and their details are being assessed from the files.

The initial inquiry had focused only on fake notices that Arora had got prepared through Vashisht to be served to those violating building bylaws and thus extorting money from them in lieu withdrawal of cases. The 80 fake notices that the VB had recovered did not bear any dispatch numbers in the MC register.

The VB officials have also sought the files from the building branch related to the properties which were reportedly purchased by Arora's close relatives. Two of these properties, the record of which the VB has taken, include one along market on Nakodar Road and another in Vijay Nagar.

MC officials said amid all such searches and presence of VB officials, the atmosphere in the MC office had become extremely tense making it difficult for them to work. Senior officials of the arrested ATP Sukhdev Vashisht too are reportedly on the radar as the teams suspect that malafide practices on such a large scale could not be possible without things being in their knowledge.

The VB teams are also reportedly working in sync with the officials of the tehsil complex. Records of details of properties purchased by Arora and his family members in the past three years are being sought for further expanding the probe into the network run by him. The role of Arora, councillors and his henchmen in the sale of government properties like the one of irrigation department in Lajpat Nagar and shamlat land and cremation ground in Dhilwan and around is also set to be probed.

Arora's relatives, including Raju Madaan, father-in-law of his daughter, is learnt to be on the run. The VB teams had taken Arora to Madaan's place for search this afternoon. Madaan, who worked very closely with Arora in his political innings, is learnt to be absconding since Friday after locking his house. Arora had even openly supported the candidature of Madaan in the MC elections held in December but the party had other plans.

Amid tightening of noose around Arora, there are reports that another prominent AAP leader from Jalandhar could come on the VB radar as similar complaints are being lodged against him too.