Top Andhra official arrested for owning illegal assets

The Anti-Corruption Bureau of Andhra Pradesh Saturday arrested a top official and recovered huge assets which he had amassed through alleged illegal means.

The ACB arrested Gangadharam, Engineer-in-Chief, Roads and Buildings Department, Andhra Pradesh, in Hyderabad and shifted him to Visakhapatnam.

Acting on allegations that he owns assets disproprotionate to his known sources of income and involved in corruption, the ACB officials conducted simultaneous raids at 20 places in both Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.

The assets identified by the ACB sleuths are estimated to be worth Rs 100 crore in open market.

The anti-graft agency conducted raids at his and his relatives' houses and other premises. The raids were carried out at 11 places in Hyderabad alone.

ACB Jaoint Director T. Mohan Rao said 20 teams of the agency carried out the searches in Hyderabad, Vijayawada, Visakhapatnam, Guntur, Chittoor, Nellore and other towns.

ACB officials seized Rs 40 lakh cash and gold jewellery worth Rs 15 lakh from Gangadharam's house in Kukatpally area in Hyderabad.

They also identified villas in Jubliee Hills and Allwyn colony and prime lands in the name of the official and his relatives in and around Hyderabad.

Houses, lands and other properties were also identified in various districts of Andhra Pradesh.

The officials seized documents of the properties. They said a real picture of the illegal assets of the Engineer-in-Chief will be known on Monday when the bank lockers will be opened.

Gangadharam had faced allegations of receiving kickbacks from contractors in a project relating to six-lane road in Visakhapatnam district.

The ACB also conducted raids on the premises of a contractor and seized cash and jewellery.

--IANS

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