Lokayukta police raid office, residence of 15 Karnataka government officers in DA cases; Bengaluru East tehsildar arrested

S Ajith Kumar Rai was among the 15 government officers who were raided by the state Lokayukta police on Wednesday, 28 June.

Published Jun 29, 2023 | 5:03 PMUpdated Jun 29, 2023 | 5:03 PM

Lokayukta police arrest Bengaluru East Tehsildar

The Karnataka Lokayukta police on Wednesday, 28 June, conducted massive search operations across the state in connection with 15 Disproportionate Assets (DA) cases registered against as many government officers in various Lokayukta Police Stations across Karnataka.

According to a statement issued by the office of the Lokayukta, the cases were registered in Bengaluru City, Bengaluru Rural, Ramanagara, Chikkaballapura, Chikkamagaluru, Madikeri, Tumakuru, Vijayapura, Bagalkote, Kalaburagi, Raichur, Belagavi, Kolar, and Yadgir.

Simultaneously, a search of the residences and offices of the accused government officers and their relatives was conducted in 62 locations across the state, the statement said.

“The searches led to the disclosure of properties of the approximate value of ₹1.90 crore, including ₹40 lakh in cash. The searches also disclosed documents related to several properties in the names of other people running into hundreds of acres of land and also several high-end cars which are currently being suspected to be Benami properties of the accused. The matter is under investigation,” the statement said.

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Tehsildar of Bengaluru East arrested

On Thursday, a day after carrying out raids at 11 places belonging to him in connection with a DA case, Bengaluru East taluk Tehsildar S Ajith Kumar Rai was arrested in KR Puram in Bengaluru for a detailed investigation.

“Yes, he’s arrested since custodial interrogation was essential in this case,” Lokayukta Inspector General of Police Dr A Subramanyeshwara Rao told PTI.

Rai was among the 15 government officers who were raided, by state Lokayukta police on Wednesday in connection with DA cases registered in various Lokayukta police stations across Karnataka.

The officers who were raided by the Lokayukta sleuths include Chetana, joint director of the agriculture department in Bagalkote; Krishna Ramappa Shirur; Jinnappa Padmanna Shetti, the assistant executive engineer of Rural Drinking Water and Sanitisation Department in Muddebihal in Vijayapura; and Bhimanagouda Birada, assistant executive engineer in the public works department in Basavana Bagewadi in Vijayapura.

Raids were also carried out against PM Abdul Bashir in Kodagu; Sharanappa Madivala in Kalaburagi district; KH Ravi in Tumakuru; GN Prakash in Raichur; Shekar Hanumant Bahurupi in Hagaribommanalli in Vijayanagar; V Ramesh in Chikkaballapur; Vishwanatha Reddy in Yadgir; KB Puttaraju in Tumakuru, Kodandaramaiah V in Kolar and Gangadhar Y in Chikkamagaluru, the Lokayukta police said.

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(Disclaimer: The headline, subheads, and intro of this report along with the photos may have been reworked by South First. The rest of the content is from a syndicated feed, and has been edited for style.)

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