Punjab Vigilance conducts searches at real estate baron Ranjit Singh Gill’s residence, hours after he joined BJP

Gill is the founder of the Gillco Group, a real estate development company based in Mohali, Punjab, and was the ‘halka in-charge’ of Kharar for the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) till he quit the party in July. He was widely tipped to join Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), especially after the sitting Kharar MLA Anmol Gagan Maan announced her resignation and decision to quit politics on July 19. However, she took back her resignation the very next day.

Gill is a real estate baron and agrarian entrepreneur who began his career in real estate in Ropar in 1990 before moving to Kharar, where he founded the Gillco Group. The company is known for developing luxury residential, commercial, entertainment, and educational projects, including the notable Gillco Valley township, one of the largest in Mohali, spread over nearly 200 acres.

Beyond his business ventures, Gill has been politically active. He was a close confidant of SAD president Sukhbir Singh Badal and served as the party’s general secretary. He contested the Punjab Assembly elections from Kharar in 2017 and 2022 on an SAD ticket but was unsuccessful, finishing third in 2017 and losing to Mann in 2022.

Gill’s assets were reported to be worth Rs 74 crore in 2022, a significant increase from Rs 29 crore in 2017, as per his election affidavit. He faced an income tax raid in December 2022 at his Gillco Valley office and residences in Chandigarh, alongside associates, with cash recovered during the operation.

Additionally, an FIR was registered against him in 2021 under the Disaster Management Act for gathering more than 10 people against the district commissioner’s prohibitory orders in force.