PATNA: The Bihar Economic Offences Unit (EOU) on Thursday recovered Rs 50.05 lakh in cash during simultaneous searches at the premises of a state government executive engineer in a disproportionate assets case.
EOU Deputy Inspector General Manavjeet Singh Dhillon said the cash was recovered during a search of the premises of Narad Kumar Das, an executive engineer with the Bihar Planning and Development Department, in Muzaffarpur.
The raiding team used a currency-counting machine to count the cash, mostly in Rs 500 notes. The searches followed an EOU case registered on October 7 under Sections 13(2) and 13(1)(b) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, alleging that Das had amassed assets disproportionate to his known sources of income.
“Prima facie evidence has been found of Rs 83.5 lakh in assets allegedly acquired beyond his known legitimate sources of income, which is approximately 64.93 per cent above his known income,” Dhillon said.
The EOU also seized documents relating to investments and plots of land in Patna.
The agency obtained search warrants from the Special Court, Vigilance, Patna, and deployed teams to five locations in Bhagalpur, Munger, Patna and Muzaffarpur on Thursday morning.
The locations included Das’s residences in Bhagalpur and Patna, a flat in Muzaffarpur, a premises in Munger and the government office of the Local Area Engineering Organisation, Works Division, in Munger.
According to the EOU, the cash was recovered from Das’s in-laws’ house in Muzaffarpur. The searches also led to the recovery of jewellery, receipts showing jewellery purchases worth Rs 5 lakh and documents relating to plots of land in Bhagalpur and Patna.
A plot in Rupaspur, Patna, had been purchased for Rs 68.41 lakh in the name of Das’s mother-in-law, Bina Vidyarthi. Investigators said the market value of the land was substantially higher than the price recorded in the registered deed.
The EOU has shared details of the disproportionate assets investigation with Das’s parent department, the State Water Resources Department, for further disciplinary action.