2 big fish in ACB net

Vijayawada: In one of the biggest raids conducted by Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) in recent months, the officials on Monday conducted raids on the residences of two officials in various parts of the state and seized property documents worth hundreds of crores and booked cases against them for possessing properties disproportionate to their income.

The two accused -- Nalluri Venkata Siva Prasad, Technical Officer in the Engineering Department, Vijayawada Municipal Corporation and G V Raghu, Director at the Directorate of Town and Country Planning, Vijayawada -- have been taken into custody. The two officials are close friends and have business links for more than a decade. They worked together earlier in the Vijayawada Municipal Corporation.

The ACB officials are assessing the total value of the properties which include house sites, apartment flats, lodge, under-construction convention hall, gold and silver articles, agriculture land, duplex houses. These properties are in different parts of the state as well as in Maharashtra. One of the accused invested in projects run on benami names and owned a lodge in Shirdi, Maharashtra.

The ACB officials were shocked to find the documents of the properties, gold and silver articles worth several lakhs of rupees and cash during the raids conducted in Gannavaram mandal of Krishna district and at Mangalagiri of Guntur district and other parts of the state.

Addressing media conference here on Monday, Director-General of ACB R P Thakur said the two officials were arrested on charges of possessing properties disproportionate to their income. Thakur said one of the accused G V Raghu joined the government service as Assistant Director in DTCP and worked in Anantapur, Nellore, Hyderabad and Greater Visakha Municipal Corporation and later worked as City Planner, Vijayawada, in 2002, worked as Chief City Planner, GVMC, Vizag, in 2004 and worked as Chief City Planner, Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation, in 2009 and he has been working as Director of DTCP, Vijayawada, since 20015.

The ACB Director General said Raghu owns 1,033 square yards house site in Gannavaram, 220 square yards house site in Mangalagiri, Agriculture land of 2.06 acres in Velpuru, Krishna district. Raghu also owns two house sites in Pulivellam village of Chittoor district, one house site at Vizag, duplex house at Shirdi, Maharashtra, Sai Surajkund lodge at Shirdi, Maharashtra, cash and gold ornaments worth Rs.12 lakh. Raghu also possessed several other movable and immovable properties on benami names. The ACB DG said cases were booked on the accused and action will be taken as per the law.

Referring to the second accused, Nalluri Venkata Siva Prasad, the DG said Prasad owns properties worth crores of rupees and also purchased assets in the names of his wife and mother-in-law. Prasad owned 10 house plots in Vijayawada, 11 plots in Rajanagaram of East Godavari district, three buildings in Vijayawada with G+2 and G+1 construction. Prasad had also purchased 16 flats and getting rents nearly Rs 1 lakh per month in Gannavaram. The accused also owns 11.65 acres land in Krishna, East Godavari and Guntur districts worth lakhs of rupees.

The accused is also constructing a convention hall in Gannavaram in 1.40 acres land worth Rs 4.20 crore. The accused had also invested money in companies in the name of his wife. Thakur said the accused invested in Sai Sadhan Infra Pvt Limited, Sai Sraddha Avenues PVT Limited, M/s Sri Matha Infrastructure and M/S Nalluri Vari Charitable Trust in Gannavaram.

The ACB officials have also seized gold articles weighing 8 kg worth Rs 4 crore, 10 kg silver articles and cash of Rs 43 lakh. Thakur said the officials are assessing. Raghu established five companies in the name of his mother-in-law and one benami Subbarao and later transferred them to Chintamaneni Gayatri, wife of his friend Siva Prasad, another accused.