Overview
- Raman Arora, AAP MLA from Jalandhar Central, was arrested following an eight-hour interrogation by the Punjab Vigilance Bureau on May 23, 2025.
- The investigation revealed a scheme where Arora allegedly collaborated with former assistant town planner Sukhdev Vashisht to issue fake municipal notices and extort bribes from residents.
- Arora’s arrest marks the third time an AAP MLA has faced corruption charges since the party took power in Punjab in 2022, following similar cases involving Vijay Singla and Amit Rattan Kotfatta.
- The AAP government, led by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, reiterated its zero-tolerance stance on corruption, framing the arrest as a demonstration of accountability within its own ranks.
- Opposition leaders criticized the arrest as a political maneuver, accusing the AAP of using such actions for optics rather than delivering substantive convictions.