KR Puram tahsildar Ajith Rai suspended from service after arrest in illegal assets probe

BENGALURU: A day after he was arrested in connection with an illegal assets probe, K R Puram tahsildar Ajith Rai was placed under suspension. Ajith Rai, who is now in the custody of the Lokayukta police, was found to be having disproportionate assets to the tune of 69 per cent more than his income.

Ajith Rai got a job in the Revenue Department on compassionate grounds and worked in many positions before being promoted. Presently, he was posted as tahsildar in KR Puram.

The Lokayukta police raided Tahsildar Ajith Rai’s house on Wednesday on the basis of definite information regarding corruption. They raided and investigated 12 locations including his residence in Sahakara Nagar.

The Lokayukta police seized cash of Rs 40 lakh, crores worth of registration deeds and other documents, receipts of expensive car purchases, while domestic and foreign brand liquor were also found during the raid. After 30 hours of searches, Ajit Rai was arrested by the Lokayukta police.

The Lokayukta police had sought 10 days custody of the accused, but the Lokayukta Special Court granted only seven days custody. Ajith Rai also owned property in Puttur and the court allowed the police to take him to the town for further investigation.

In a related case, Lokayukta police found 3.5 kg of silver and 850 gm of gold in two lockers belonging to Dr Chethana Patil, a joint director in the Agriculture Department, at Bagalkot. Apart from this, 600 gm of silver was found in another locker.

She was purchased flats worth Rs 1.40 crore in the Bagalkot Town Development Authority auction and other property in Kittur, her mother’s hometown, and it is suspected of be benami property. Local authorities are collecting information to trace the benami property, said Lokayukta SP Anita Haddanna.

Lokayuka officials also opened the bank locker of assistant director of the Agriculture Department, Krishna Shirur, and found 57 tolas of gold in a locker at KVG Bank, 400 gm of silver apart from gold jewellery worth Rs 15.80 lakh which was found at his residence at Vidyagiri in Bagalkot.