Suspended IMS Director found to have assets worth Rs 100 Cr

: The Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) of Telangana on Thursday said it has unearthed assets with a present market value of about Rs 100 crore, allegedly belonging to the then Director of Insurance Medical Services (IMS) who was earlier arrested in an alleged scam in supply of drugs.

The ACB probing the alleged "multi-crore" scam in the supply of medicines to dispensaries and hospitals here, has already arrested 18 people including the then Director of IMS Ch Devika Rani, some IMS officials and others since September last week and on Wednesday Rani's husband P Gurumurthi, a retired Civil Surgeon was also arrested by the agency.

The state government has already suspended Rani and other officials.

On credible information, a case of disproportionate assets was registered against Rani and her husband, who had colluded, conspired and abetted the offence, an ACB release said here.

"He also collected the bribe amounts and abetted in concealing the ill-gotten money and purchase properties on behalf of Rani," it said.

On December 3, simultaneous searches were conducted at her residence in Hyderabad and her relatives' houses at Tirupati and Kadapa in Andhra Pradesh, the ACB said.

During the searches it was revealed that Rani and her husband have acquired immovable properties worth Rs 15 crore and moveable properties of over Rs 8 crore.

While the 'documentary value' of these assets is Rs 23.14 crore, the market value is about Rs 100 crore, it said.

Gurumurthy was arrested and produced before an ACB court here which sent him to judicial custody.

Apart from these, payment of about Rs 7.3 crore to a jewellery firm by Rani is being probed, the ACB said adding the case is under investigation.