In a significant development, the Punjab Vigilance Bureau (VB) on Friday held Raman Arora, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLA from Jalandhar Central, in connection with a corruption case involving former assistant town planner (ATP) of the municipal corporation, Sukhdev Vashisht, who was also detained last week.
Arora is accused of using Vashisht to issue fake notices and extort money from targeted people. The VB conducted a raid at Arora’s residence on Friday morning following complaints filed against him.
While Vigilance Bureau officials remained tight-lipped, the AAP shared the update on X: “(Bhagwant) Mann sarkar’s big action against corruption. No one is above the law — not even within the AAP. Vigilance raids MLA Raman Arora over fake Nagar Nigam notices, extortion and digital scams. This is what real accountability looks like.”
The Punjab government withdrew Arora’s security cover of 14 police personnel on May 12, signaling impending action against the MLA. Arora, the third AAP MLA to face Vigilance Bureau scrutiny for corruption in the past three years, was arrested after eight hours of questioning.
His arrest comes exactly three years after the VB detained former health minister and Mansa MLA Dr Vijay Singla on corruption charges on May 24, 2022. Earlier, Bathinda Rural AAP MLA Amit Rattan Kotfatta was also caught in a corruption case on February 23, 2023.
According to a Vigilance Bureau official, Arora’s name surfaced during the interrogation of Vashisht, who was arrested on May 14 for demanding ₹30,000. “Vashisht operated under Arora’s patronage. He was posted in the Jalandhar Central zone for one and a half years and was deployed in the Jalandhar West zone for four years,” the official added.
Vashisht was detained after receiving complaints from colonisers and commercial unit owners. “The complainants alleged he had been delaying file approvals and extorting money from applicants,” he said.
“Despite 70% of building maps in the area having been approved by the MC, Vashisht refused to clear files unless bribes were paid. He demanded ₹30,000 a file to process the case,” the Vigilance Bureau added. The complainants alleged that Vashisht issued threats, including sealing buildings, if the demanded bribe was not paid.
“During interrogation, Vashisht admitted he issued 350 notices to stakeholders from April 2022 to March 2025. The notices are under investigation due to the huge proceeds of crime,” an official said.
The Vigilance Bureau seized files related to land-use change permissions, notices sent to commercial and residential units for dues, and authorisations granted for residential colonies and commercial developments in the Jalandhar Central and West assembly constituencies over the past two years.
Raman Arora and Sheetal Angural, who was the Jalandhar West AAP MLA before joining the BJP in the Lok Sabha elections last year, were among the first to accuse the BJP of poaching AAP leaders ahead of the 2022 assembly elections. Following this, the AAP labeled the effort “Operation Lotus” and filed a case.
However, Arora attended an event organised by the RSS and the BJP to mark the martyrdom of Shaheed Bhagat Singh in Jalandhar on March 23.
Bholath Congress MLA Sukhpal Khaira termed Arora’s arrest an eyewash “just like Dr Vijay Singla, who was also arrested three years ago but continues to be the Mansa MLA with full blessings of CM Bhagwant Mann”. “If a genuine inquiry is conducted against the AAP MLAs, barring (Amritsar North MLA) Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh, all will meet the same fate,” he said.
Follow us
