The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has announced that it has arrested three persons — two private middlemen and one associate — in a Rs 20 lakh bribery case involving demand and acceptance of illegal gratification on behalf of officials posted in the Punjab Vigilance Bureau, the agency said on Monday.A CBI spokesperson said the case was registered on the basis of a complaint filed by a Punjab State Tax Officer, who alleged that Vikas alias Vicky Goyal and his son Raghav Goyal demanded Rs 20 lakh to secure closure of a complaint pending against him in the office of the Director General, Vigilance, Punjab.The two were allegedly acting as intermediaries for senior Vigilance officials, including O P Rana, the reader to the DG Vigilance, who personally assured the complainant that his matter would be settled once the bribe was paid. During verification, the allegations regarding demand of bribe were prima facie substantiated.The accused subsequently negotiated the bribe amount down from Rs 20 lakh to Rs 13 lakh, along with a Samsung Galaxy Z Fold7 mobile phone to be given to Rana. During the trap operation conducted on May 11 at Chandigarh, accused Ankit Wadhwa, an associate of the Goyals, was apprehended while accepting Rs 13 lakh in cash and the mobile phone from the complainant on behalf of the accused persons.Both the bribe amount and the mobile phone were recovered on the spot.However, Raghav Goyal, Vikas alias Vicky Goyal and Rana fled after being alerted by gunmen who were present near the spot for surveillance. After a chase, Raghav Goyal, Vikas alias Vicky Goyal, and two gunmen were apprehended by the CBI team near Ambala at the Punjab-Haryana border.Rana, the reader to the DG Vigilance, remains absconding. Efforts are being made to arrest him.