The Himachal Pradesh State Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (SV&ACB) has registered a first information report (FIR) against Dharamsala MLA and former minister Sudhir Sharma in a case related to alleged possession of assets disproportionate to his known sources of income.The development comes close on the heels of the VB registering an FIR against former Dehra MLA Hoshyar Singh earlier this month for allegedly misusing funds under the MLA Discretionary Grants Scheme.The VB, in a press statement, said the case against Sharma has been registered under the relevant provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, as amended, after the completion of a preliminary enquiry initiated based on a source information report.During the enquiry, the VB examined financial and property-related records obtained from various government departments and statutory authorities, including income tax returns, election affidavits, property records, house building advance records and valuation reports.The enquiry allegedly found a prima facie disproportion between Sharma’s assets and expenditure and his known lawful sources of income during the check period. After reconciling records relating to assets, income and expenditure, the VB said it found sufficient material to warrant registration of a regular criminal case and a detailed investigation.The VB said the enquiry also identified several financial transactions and assets requiring further verification, including the source of declared income, land sale transactions, investments, banking transactions, acquisition of vehicles and expenditure incurred on the construction of a residential property.It further stated that certain records relating to construction expenditure were not available during the preliminary enquiry, while the valuation of the residential property, including interior works, fixtures and furnishings, requires further technical assessment.Further investigation will examine financial records, banking trails, movable and immovable assets, investments, digital evidence, technical valuation of the residential property and other connected transactions. The role of any other person, if it emerges during the investigation, will also be examined.Reacting to the FIR, Sharma dismissed the allegations as “baseless” and without “merit”.”I won’t call it even political vendetta but personal vendetta of Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu against me and it will be responded to personally at the right time,” Sharma said.The BJP MLA alleged that the state government had first constituted a Public Works Department committee to evaluate his assets but scrapped it after it failed to find any irregularities.He claimed that a fresh committee was subsequently formed, which again assessed his assets, and that the Income Tax Department had also carried out an evaluation.Notably, Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu and Sharma have been at loggerheads since the latter quit the Congress in 2024 after cross-voting in the Rajya Sabha elections. The two leaders have frequently traded barbs, with their political rivalry often spilling into public exchanges.