Punjab Vigilance arrests Mansa jail superintendent

The Punjab State Vigilance Bureau has arrested the district Jail Superintendent of Mansa, Davinder Singh Bajwa, in a case of alleged corruption.

The VB has already nabbed Jail Line Officer Sikander Singh Mann and prisoner Pawan Kumar in December 2017 whereas another accused Deputy Jail Superintendent Gurjeet Singh Brar is still at large, an official spokesperson of the Vigilance Bureau said here today.

Bajwa in connivance with jail officers Gurjeet Singh Brar, Sikander Singh Mann and prisoner Pawan Kumar allegedly collected money from prisoners to the tune of Rs 10,000 to Rs 25,000 in lieu of changing their barracks/cells, allowing them to use cell phones, intoxicants/drugs and allowing them to meet their relatives without making entry in the jail register and giving relaxation from manual work.

Pawan Kumar was arrested in December last year while allegedly accepting a bribe of Rs 50,000. A case under the Prevention of Corruption Act has been registered against the Jail Superintendent, the Deputy Jail Superintendent, the Jail Line Officer and prisoner at VB Police Station Bathinda.

The spokesperson said in a statement that during the investigation of the accused, the Bureau had recovered a register having details of the money collected from prisoners. The register was maintained by Pawan Kumar allegedly at the behest of the deputy jail superintendent.

Pawan Kumar had alleged that he was sharing the money with the jail superintendent and deputy jail superintendent, the VB spokesperson said.

"It was also confirmed from call details of the accused prisoner that he was constantly in touch with the jailor and even called him on the day a trap was laid by the VB so as to allow him to collect bribe from complainant. It has also come to light that the same mobile phone number was being used inside jail premises by prisoners in connivance with jail officers," he said.