VISAKHAPATNAM: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Visakhapatnam branch, registered a case of disproportionate assets against Padam Singh, a Plant Protection Officer of the Plant Quarantine Station on Friday.
Singh has acquired movable and immovable assets to the tune of Rs 1,98,22,794, which is 1,704 per cent more than his known source of income between December 2, 2020, and July 15, 2022. He had reportedly acquired moveable and immovable assets approximately to the tune of Rs 1,89,32,89.
Sleuths of the Central agency took up the investigation after the steel plant officer was caught red-handed while he was allegedly accepting a bribe of Rs 6,000 on July 15, 2022. On further investigation, CBI officials learnt that Singh had been allegedly abusing his official position and amassing disproportionate assets to his known source of income.
The wealth of the plant protection officer allegedly increased from Rs 23 lakh to more than Rs 2.12 crore within a span of 18 months. According to a CBI press release, Singh’s total income was Rs 11,62,816 for the said period, but his expenditure for the same period was Rs 20,52,717.
The CBI seized a huge amount of cash from Singh’s residences at Visakhapatnam and Roorkee as well as from the residences of his acquaintances at Vizag and Kakinada. The disproportionate assets included over Rs 1.86 crore in cash, plots in Roorkee, gold jewellery worth over Rs 32 lakh and Rs 10 lakh in a bank account among others.
WEALTH UP FROM Rs 23L TO Rs 2 CR IN 18 MONTHS
Sleuths of the Central agency took up the investigation after the steel plant officer was caught red-handed while he was allegedly accepting a bribe of Rs 6,000 on July 15, 2022. The wealth of the plant protection officer allegedly increased from Rs 23 lakh to more than Rs 2.12 crore within a span of 18 months.