Vadodara Civic Body Officer Mahesh Parnami Reinstated After Suspension, Assigned to Vishwamitri Project

Vadodara, March 17 (NationPress) The Vadodara Municipal Corporation (VMC) has reinstated Mahesh Parnami, a former land and property officer, who was suspended in 2019 after being discovered with 79.51% disproportionate assets, officials reported.

After a four-year suspension, Parnami has been tasked with overseeing soil excavation for the Vishwamitri Project at Transport Nagar.

This reinstatement has ignited considerable debate within the corporation, with numerous individuals questioning the rationale behind reinstating an officer previously accused of corruption.

The Vishwamitri Project's objective is to avert future artificial flooding in the Vishwamitri River by deepening the riverbed and adjacent lakes.

Parnami's responsibilities will include supervising the excavation and monitoring the soil removed from the river.

In 2019, the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) suspended Parnami after his arrest for possessing assets disproportionate to his legal income.

Despite his role as a ward officer, he was placed in the Land and Property Department, which raised suspicions at that time.

His return to a lucrative position under the Vishwamitri Project has raised eyebrows, leading many to speculate about potential internal influences that may have facilitated his reinstatement.

In Gujarat, numerous officials have been implicated in cases involving disproportionate assets, emphasizing concerns regarding corruption within the state’s administrative system.

In June 2020, the ACB identified assets valued at Rs 68.24 lakh belonging to Girjashankar Sadhu, an environmental engineer with the Gujarat Pollution Control Board (GPCB), which was 53.51% above his documented income sources.

Sadhu had previously been arrested in 2017 for accepting a bribe of Rs 1.2 lakh from a company in Kalol during an inspection.

Further investigations revealed he owned a petrol pump and a farmhouse in Mandvi, Kutch; land in Kamrej, Surat; and additional plots in Halol-Kalol.

In June 2024, the ACB initiated a case against Bhikhabhai Theba, the deputy fire officer of the Rajkot Municipal Corporation, for possessing assets exceeding Rs 79.94 lakh, which was nearly 67.27% more than his lawful income.

This action followed an investigation that began after a fire incident at the TRP Game Zone that resulted in 27 casualties.

Searches at Theba's properties were executed collaboratively by the ACB and the Rajkot Crime Branch.

In September 2019, Jayanti Patel, a field assistant with the Gujarat Land Development Corporation (GLDC) in Chhota Udepur, along with his wife, was booked for owning disproportionate assets totaling Rs 2.8 crore, accounting for 59% of his overall assets.

The investigation uncovered unaccounted cash, money transfers, and properties, including land parcels, houses, vehicles, and machinery.

Notably, Patel allegedly transferred Rs 1.5 crore to his son's account, who was listed as a contractor with GLDC.

In December 2019, the ACB discovered disproportionate assets worth nearly Rs 8.48 crore from three government officials in Surendranagar.

Additional Collector Chandrakant Pandya had assets of approximately Rs 6.74 crore, Deputy Collector V.Z. Chauhan had assets worth Rs 1.25 crore, and Deputy Mamlatdar J.L. Dhadvi owned assets totaling Rs 49.27 lakh. These officials were initially suspended after being involved in a land fraud case where government land was illicitly returned to a private individual through forged documents.