Unaccounted for wealth recovered in Lokayukta raid

Lokayukta police verifying documents at the residence of Excise Inspector Hanumanthappain Raichur on Friday. —PHOTO: SANTOSH SAGAR

Lokayukta police conducted simultaneous raids on the office and residences of officials on Friday and unearthed unaccounted property.

Unaccounted moveable and immoveable property worth more than Rs. 1 crore was recovered from the offices and houses of Jagannath Patil, working as Assistant Engineer in the Krishna Jala Bhagya Nigam Ltd. in Kalaburagi.

The offices of Mr. Patil at Chigaralli camp in Jewargi taluk, residences in Kalaburagi city and at Nirana in Humnabad taluk in Bidar district were raided simultaneously.

The official owned six plots in Kalaburagi and Bidar districts, owned a house in Kalaburagi city and another at Nirana village in Humnabad taluk in Bidar district and also 28-acre agriculture land. The police have unearthed gold ornament and silver articles worth over Rs. 6 lakh.

The official also owned a high-end car and two motor cycles. The raids were still continuing and the details about the contents in the bank lockers and the cash available in the bank balances were yet to be known.

Lokayukta officials raided the house and offices of Ashok Vangapalli, assistant engineer with the PWD Bidar division, and unearthed properties worth Rs. 1 crore, M.B. Patil, Lokayukta superintendent of police, said.

The house of Excise Sub-Inspector Hanumanthappa’s house in Raichur too were raided. Sources in the department said the team led by Lokayukta Superintendent of Police V.V. Kumbar, Deputy Superintendent of Police S.B. Patil and Inspectors Daulat and Lingappa, had seized Rs. 65,000 in cash and documents related to properties worth about Rs. 50 lakh from the residence at Ashapur Road. The team also raided at his office, but could not find any vital information, except his bank account numbers.

“Hanumanthappa joined the department as a Excise Guard and later promoted to Sub-Inspector. He purchased three residential plots, 18 acres of agricultural land, a car, two two-wheelers and a double-storeyed house. The verification documents and bank passbooks is under way,” Mr. Patil told The Hindu .