Following the intervention of the State Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (SV&ACB), the Haryana government has issued instructions stating that officers or officials caught red-handed in trap cases or during raids and subsequently released on bail shall not be posted to the same post or station.The instructions have been issued by the Vigilance Department in the Chief Secretary’s office to all administrative secretaries, heads of departments, the Director General of Police, divisional commissioners, deputy commissioners, managing directors and chief administrators of all boards, corporations and public sector units, as well as registrars of all state universities.The directions, dated October 27, state that “such officers/officials shall be transferred to a station away from the concerned jurisdiction, preferably beyond the adjoining boundary districts, so as to ensure a fair and impartial trial and to prevent any possibility of undue influence being exercised upon the complainant/witness.”If an official belongs to a district cadre, he or she shall be transferred to another station within the district.The directions have been issued because officers or officials caught red-handed in trap cases by the SV&ACB and subsequently released on bail while their trials are pending continue to be posted at the same station where the cases registered against them are being tried.“The continuance of such officers/officials at the same station carries a strong likelihood of their influencing, intimidating or exerting pressure on the complainant or prosecution witnesses, thereby affecting the fair and impartial conduct of judicial proceedings and enabling them to derive undue advantage in the pending cases. This principle applies equally to those who are presently lodged in judicial custody and may be released on bail in the future,” the directions state.Recently, the SV&ACB set a new record by registering the highest number of trap cases in 10 years. As of October 21, 2026, the Vigilance Bureau had registered a total of 171 trap cases, the highest number recorded in a single year since 2016. The SV&ACB has also compiled a list of 190 officials and employees in the state against whom repeated complaints or inputs regarding corruption have been received and is analysing the information.In addition, the Bureau will offer cash rewards of up to Rs 1 lakh to teams that catch Class-I officers accepting bribes. Informers who provide credible information and assist in the arrest of corrupt officials will receive 30% of the prescribed reward.Bureau chief Dr AS Chawla said that instances had come to light in which officials or employees facing action for corruption were subsequently reposted to the same district after some time. Such occurrences, he said, “adversely affect the objective of anti-corruption measures and undermine public trust.”