Chandigarh, Feb. 13 -- The Punjab Vigilance Bureau (VB) has apprehended Sukhdev Singh of Chandigarh, one of the key co-accused in the 'guava orchard scam' that took place in Bakarpur village in SAS Nagar district in 2016-17. The accused had fraudulently received approximately Rs.12 crore in compensation in his and his wife's accounts in "collusion with government officials and other individuals". The amount has been recovered, according to the VB.

An official spokesperson of the VB said Sukhdev played an active role in the criminal conspiracy, indulging in cheating, forgery and falsification of records, thereby causing wrongful loss to the state exchequer while obtaining illicit financial gains through bribery.

The VB investigation has ...