Telangana ACB Interrogates Officer Possessing Assets Worth Rs 100 Crore
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Hyderabad, Dec 12 (NationPress) The Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) of Telangana commenced an interrogation of Nikesh Kumar, Assistant Executive Engineer in the Irrigation Department, on Thursday. He was detained earlier this month due to allegations surrounding disproportionate assets.
Following a court's decision to grant the ACB custody of the implicated official for four days, anti-corruption agents retrieved him from Chanchalguda prison.
Upon arrival at the ACB office located in Nampally, investigative officers began their questioning.
The ACB discovered assets estimated at Rs 17.73 crore held by Nikesh Kumar and his family, which significantly exceed his known income sources. Among their findings, a bank locker contained gold jewelry weighing 1.5 kg.
The cumulative market valuation of his assets—including a villa, flat, plots, agricultural land, and gold ornaments—exceeds Rs 100 crore.
Having joined the service a decade back, it is alleged that he earns a minimum of Rs 2 lakh daily through corrupt practices. The ACB officials expressed astonishment at the extent of the disproportionate assets.
This interrogation is expected to unveil additional details regarding this high-profile case. The agency will also investigate whether Nikesh Kumar acted as a 'benami' for another individual.
Previously, in May, Nikesh was ensnared by the ACB team when he solicited and accepted a bribe of Rs 2 lakh alongside three other officials from the irrigation and revenue departments.
A significant portion of Nikesh Kumar's illicit wealth is thought to have been accrued through No Objection Certificates (NOCs) he issued for building permissions via the TG-bPASS portal.
This incident marks the second-largest success for the ACB following the arrest of Ch Devika Rani, former director of Insurance Medical Services (IMS), in 2019, and Shiva Balakrishna, HMDA Director (Town Planning), earlier this year. The assets confiscated from Devika amounted to Rs 30 crore, while unregistered properties worth Rs 9 crore were seized from Balakrishna. The values of the seized assets for both officials were only based on government records, with the actual market worth estimated in the hundreds of crores.
