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BENGALURU
Lokayukta searches across Karnataka uncovered assets worth Rs 29.62 crore linked to eight officials facing disproportionate assets cases.
Karnataka Lokayukta sleuths conducted searches at more than 33 locations, including residences, offices and premises of relatives of the officials.
The searches covered Bengaluru, Chikkaballapur, Kalaburagi, Bengaluru South, Mandya, Kodagu, Dharwad and Bidar districts.
The officials named in the cases include Darshan Gowda, First Division Assistant in the Chikkaballapur Deputy Commissioner’s office; retired Greater Bengaluru Authority Assistant Executive Engineer H M Ranganath; Bengaluru District Registrar Sridevi; and Madikeri Municipal Commissioner H R Ramesh.
Others include HESCOM Assistant Executive Engineer Kiran Baindur, GESCOM Assistant Executive Engineer Rajeshwari Babalad, retired Agriculture Officer Manik Rao and Mandya Backward Classes Welfare Department Hostel Superintendent Shivaraju M.
The searches reportedly resulted in the detection of movable and immovable assets, including houses, plots, agricultural land, gold and silver ornaments, vehicles, cash and bank fixed deposits.
Sridevi was found to have disproportionate assets valued at Rs 6.8 crore. Searches linked to her uncovered two plots, two houses, agricultural land and a garment factory worth Rs 2.3 crore, besides Rs 31 lakh cash and gold and silver ornaments worth Rs 35.5 lakh.
Ranganath, who retired on August 31, was found with Rs 1.03 crore cash, two plots, four houses and about 10 acres of agricultural land. Gold worth Rs 40 lakh and a fixed deposit of Rs 1.42 crore were also recovered. His disproportionate assets were estimated at Rs 3.85 crore.
