Lokayukta raids in K'taka uncover Rs 22.5 crore in disproportionate assets of eight govt officers

Vartha Bharati | 13-11-2024 | 14:46:00 IST

Image Credit: Karnataka Lokayukta

Bengaluru: Lokayukta searches on the premises of eight government officers across the state on reportedly found disproportionate assets worth a staggering Rs 22.5 crore. The simultaneous raids were conducted at the residences, offices, and residences of the relatives of the eight government officers in more than 37 places across seven districts.

The highest-value assets were found with Prakash V, a retired Divisional Mechanical Engineer from KSRTC, Ramanagara, as reported by Deccan Herald on Wednesday. Officials found that Prakash owned eight plots, six houses and six acres of agricultural land valued at Rs 3.97 crore. His movable assets, including Rs 15 lakh in cash, were valued at Rs 28.17 lakh, the Lokayukta said in a statement.

During the searches at four places linked to Kashinath Buddappa Bhajantri, Assistant Engineer, Rural Drinking Water and Sanitation, Hirekerur, officials found that the suspected government official disposed around Rs 9 lakh in cash, out of the washroom window, which was later recovered. Officials found that Bhajantri possessed assets disproportionate to his known sources of income to the tune of Rs 3.20 crore, the report added.

The others raided were Vittal Shivappa Dhavaleshwar, Village Administrative Officer, Revenue Department, Nippani Taluk, Belagavi (total assets: Rs 1.08 crore); Venkatesh S. Majumdar, Assistant Commissioner of Commercial Taxes, Commercial Tax Department, Bengaluru (Rs 2.21 crore); Kamal Raj, Assistant Director, Commerce and Industrial Department, District Industrial Centre, Industrial Area, Davangere (Rs 1.99 crore); Raveendra Kumar, Deputy Director (Deputy Tahsildar), Training Centre, Bidar (Rs 4.22 crore); Nagesh D, Public Relations Officer, Mysuru City Corporation (Rs 2.72 crore), and Govindappa Hanumanthappa Bhajantri, Assistant Secretary, KIADB, Dharwad (Rs 2.79 crore).

Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.

Three killed as fire destroys huts in Thane district

11-04-2026 ¦ 11-04-2026 IST

Thane (PTI): Three persons were killed in a major fire that broke out in a slum cluster in Thane district of Maharashtra, triggering the explosion of multiple LPG cylinders, a civic official said on Saturday.

The blaze erupted at around 8.30 PM on Friday in the Navghar area of Mira Bhayander at Indralok slum colony, Chief Fire Officer of Mira Bhayander Municipal Corporation (MBMC) Prakash Borade told PTI.

Flames were visible from a long distance as the fire quickly spread through the densely packed cluster of temporary huts made of thatch and cloth, he said.

Around 30 to 35 huts were gutted in the incident. Several gas cylinders exploded during the blaze. Fire personnel managed to remove as many as 24 cylinders from the site, some of them filled and others empty, the official said.

Firefighters battled the blaze for nearly an hour before bringing it under control, Borade said.

The three deceased were charred beyond recognition, and their bodies have been sent to a government hospital for postmortem, he added.

The exact cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained.