CBI files FIR into graft allegations involving OSD to Punjab CM; searches Mann's 'camp office'

New Delhi/Chandigarh: The CBI on Tuesday registered a corruption case involving an OSD to Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann and other senior officers on the directions of Punjab and Haryana High Court and conducted searches at multiple locations including the "camp office" of Mann, officials said.

The CBI action came following an order of the high court which had directed the probe to be conducted by the federal agency noting that the material shared by the Enforcement Directorate prima facie indicated their involvement in acts of corruption.

Reacting to the development, Mann posted on 'X' in Gurmukhi that the BJP has started preparing for Punjab elections.

ਭਾਜਪਾ ਵੱਲੋਂ ਪੰਜਾਬ ਦੀਆਂ ਚੋਣਾਂ ਦੀ ਤਿਆਰੀ ਸ਼ੁਰੂ..ਮੇਰੇ ਕੈਂਪ ਆਫ਼ਿਸ ਵਿੱਚ CBI ਰੇਡ ਕੀਤੀ ਗਈ..ਹੁਣ ਪੰਜਾਬ ਵਿੱਚ ED ਤੇ CBI ਦੀ ਦੁਰਵਰਤੋਂ ਕੀਤੀ ਜਾਵੇਗੀ..ਤਾਂ ਕਿ ਪੰਜਾਬ ਸਰਕਾਰ ਅਤੇ ਮੈਨੂੰ ਬਦਨਾਮ ਕੀਤਾ ਜਾ ਸਕੇ..ਲੋਕਾਂ ਵੱਲੋਂ ਮਿਲਦੇ ਪਿਆਰ ਨੂੰ ਦੇਖਕੇ ਭਾਜਪਾ ਘਬਰਾਹਟ ਵਿੱਚ ਹੈ..

— Bhagwant Mann (@BhagwantMann) October 6, 2026

"CBI raided my camp office...now ED and CBI will be misused in Punjab, so that Punjab govt and me can be defamed. The BJP is nervous seeing the love from people," he posted.

The high court order came on a public interest litigation filed by advocate Nikhil Saraf, who had sought an independent probe into the matter raised by the ED with the Punjab Police in its letters to the DGP.

"The material shared by ED prima facie indicated involvement of high public officials in acts of corruption and at least required registering of FIR so that proper investigation in the matter would be carried out. This is not the response of the Punjab Police," the court noted.

The ED wrote to the Punjab Police, seeking registration of an FIR against an alleged middleman Nitin Gohal and others for allegedly influencing transfers and postings of government officials, facilitating arms licence approvals, leaking confidential government documents and securing government approvals in lieu of alleged monetary and other benefits.

The ED had written three letters to the Punjab DGP for the registration of a case. The ED's letter stems from a money laundering investigation linked to the submission of alleged fake consent letters for obtaining Change of Land Use (CLU) in a case involving a housing society.

The ED had conducted searches on the premises of Nitin Gohal, Ajay Sehgal of Indian Cooperative House Building Society, the Suntec City Project and some others in May.

The agency had submitted its 200-page affidavit to the Punjab and Haryana High Court on the PIL filed by lawyer Saraf, seeking a probe into the ED's allegations.