Meet Gurpreet Singh Bhullar, 2004 Batch Punjab IPS Officer Whose Net Worth Is Rs 152 Crore

NEW DELHI: Gurpreet Singh Bhullar, the 2004 batch IPS officer posted in Punjab, is possibly one of the richest government servants in the country. According to the Union Home Ministry records, Gurpreet Singh Bhullar, who is currently posted as the Inspector General of Police (IGP) in Punjab, has properties worth Rs 152 crore.

Bhullar is one of the two 2004-batch IPS officers, who were promoted to the rank of IGP by the Punjab Police earlier this year. Baljot Singh Rathore being the other Punjab cadre IPS officer. The order came alongside the promotion of the 7 officers of the 1997 batch to the rank of ADGP.

Gurpreet Singh Bhullar’s Career & Family Background

Gurpreet Singh Bhullar did BA hons before becoming an IPS officer in 2004. Bhullar was posted as the SSP of Jalandhar a few years back. His father and grandfather Gurdayal Singh Bhullar were also IPS officers and were posted in Jalandhar during their services. Gurdayal Singh Bhullar was the SSP of Jalandhar between 1957 and 1960.

Gurpreet Singh Bhullar also served as the police commissioner of Ludhiana before being promoted to the IGP rank. Bhullar also had the longest term as SSP of Mohali. The IPS officer has had two terms as Mohali SSP, first between 2009 and 2013 and from 2015 till August 2016.

Richer Than Top Punjab Politicians

Bhullar grabbed eyeballs when he declared his immovable assets in 2016. According to the records of the property returns filed by Bhullar that are available on the Home Ministry’s website, this 2004 batch IPS officer possessed properties worth Rs 152 crore.

During that time, Bhullar was way richer than former Punjab chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh and SAD leader Sukhbir Singh Badal. While Captain Amarinder Singh had a net worth of Rs 48 crore, Badal’s net worth was around Rs 102 crore in 2016.

Breakup Of Bhullar’s Property 

In his tax returns, Bhullar declared 16 properties, including eight residential, four agricultural and three commercial plots. He also owned a commercial plot worth Rs 85-lakh at the Barakhamba Road in central Delhi along with a 1,500 square-yard vacant plot in Delhi's posh Sainik Farms. 

According to the documents, Bhullar’s most expensive asset is pegged at around Rs 45 crore and mentioned as “uncultivable land” in a village in Mohali. In his immovable property returns (IPRs), Bhullar mentioned that he “inherited” most of these properties and stated “ancestral property flowing from grandparents“ as a source in many cases.

Bhullar also mentioned the date of acquisition for at least 12 properties as January 11, 2013. He is among several Punjab-based IPS officers who had submitted details of their properties registered under their own name or spouses or parents, which have been made public since 2011.