Retired head constable held on bribery charge

The Vigilance Bureau (VB) Ludhiana has arrested retired Head Constable Balwinder Singh, an accomplice of the Station House Officer (SHO) of Machhiwara Police Station, for accepting a bribe of Rs 10,000. Singh had been carrying out duties at the police station despite lacking official orders from the police department.

According to a VB spokesperson, the arrest followed a complaint from Sukhvir Singh, a resident of Mohan Majra village in Machhiwara sub-division, Khanna police district. Singh had reported that his car had been impounded by Machhiwara police and was being held by Moharrir Head Constable (MHC) Karan. Initially, Balwinder Singh demanded Rs 25,000 for the car’s release, which was later reduced to Rs 15,000 after negotiations.

On January 28, 2025, the complainant spoke to Balwinder Singh again and managed to lower the bribe amount to Rs 10,000. The complainant recorded their conversation and submitted it as evidence to the VB Range office in Ludhiana.

Following a preliminary inquiry, the VB team set up a trap and caught Singh red-handed outside the Machhiwara police station while accepting the bribe. The complainant’s car was also found parked within the police station premises.

Further investigation revealed that Singh had retired from the Punjab Armed Police (PAP) but was illegally assigned duties at the police station by the SHO of Machhiwara, without any official orders. The roles of the SHO and MHC are now under scrutiny.

A case has been filed against the accused under Section 7A of the Prevention of Corruption Act and Section 318 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) at the VB Police Station, Ludhiana range.