Chandigarh: Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann’s officer on special duty (OSD) Rajbir Singh Ghuman faced his second round of 4.5-hour CBI questioning on Monday in connection with an ongoing corruption probe.Speaking to the media outside the agency’s office, Ghuman dismissed WhatsApp chats flagged by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) as routine requests for postings and transfers, while questioning the timeline surrounding cash-stuffed bags allegedly thrown from a Kharar high-rise apartment.It was Ghuman’s second appearance before the central agency, following a six-hour questioning last Friday. On coming out of the CBI office after the session that stretched from 2 pm to 6.30 pm, Ghuman said the CBI posed around 40 to 50 questions, some of which revisited previous inquiries. “The questioning was on similar lines to last time, and I gave satisfactory replies,” he said.Ghuman denied that WhatsApp chats recovered by the ED from businessman Nitin Gohal’s phone contained anything illicit. “Those were routine messages regarding requests for transfers and postings. They were normal messages, and there was nothing (incriminating) in them,” he said.According to the ED, Gohal’s seized phone revealed 21 WhatsApp chats relating to transfers and postings of officials between Sept 2023 and March 2026.Regarding the incident where cash-filled bags were reportedly thrown from a ninth-floor apartment belonging to Gohal at Kharar’s Western Towers Society in May, Ghuman stated that the incident had not been incorporated into the CBI investigation. He questioned how Gohal’s family could have tossed the bags an hour after being detained.“The ED itself stated in its panchnama that the bags were recovered on the road. The raid began at 7 am, and his family was taken into custody by 7.10 am. Since the bags were allegedly thrown at 8.30 am, how could they possibly have thrown them? Either someone tossed the bags out of panic, or it was a ‘drama’ by some agency.”Ghuman said he had been called again on Oct 22. “I will come again and cooperate (with CBI),” he said.Alleging an attempt to intimidate certain individuals, Ghuman said he urged CBI officials to conduct a fair probe, expressing confidence that an impartial investigation would promptly get them a clean chit.Hitting out at opposition parties, Ghuman said, “There has been no corruption—this is purely propaganda to defame us. Whenever the ED or CBI issues a letter, opposition leaders like Bikram Singh Majithia and Sukhpal Singh Khaira immediately get hold of copies and make them public.”Ghuman was earlier alleged to have skipped two summons from CBI on Oct 7 and 9. The first time, CMO said no summons was received, and in the second instance Ghuman issued a legal response to the notice but did not turn up in person.On Oct 12, SC granted Ghuman interim protection from coercive action in the case and directed him to fully cooperate with the investigation. The very next day, ED, too, registered a case in Jalandhar, adding an alleged money-laundering angle to the probe.The investigation stems specifically from a CBI case registered under directives from Punjab and Haryana high court. The agency has to meet a court-mandated deadline to file its comprehensive investigation report by Dec 4. The probe centres on allegations of influence-peddling, tender manipulation, real estate irregularities and a “cash for posting and transfer” network.
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