In a major crackdown on corruption, the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) of Telangana has arrested an Assistant Executive Engineer from the Irrigation Department, Nikesh Kumar, for possessing disproportionate assets. The ACB began questioning the accused on Thursday after he was arrested earlier this month in connection with a case of illicit wealth. Following a court’s order, the ACB took him into custody for four days before bringing him to their office in Nampally for further interrogation.
During the investigation, ACB officials uncovered assets worth over ₹100 crore belonging to Nikesh Kumar and his family members. The officials found ₹17.73 crore worth of assets that were far beyond his known sources of income. In addition to this, gold jewelry weighing 1.5 kg was discovered in a bank locker, along with several properties including villas, flats, plots, agricultural land, and more. The total market value of these assets is estimated to exceed ₹100 crore. Nikesh Kumar, who joined the government service about a decade ago, is said to have been earning at least ₹2 lakh per day through corrupt means. The extent of his unexplained wealth left the ACB officials astounded.
The ACB is now investigating whether Kumar was operating under someone else’s name in what is known as a “benami” transaction. This arrest comes after a previous incident in May, when Nikesh Kumar was caught accepting a bribe of ₹2 lakh along with three other officials from the Irrigation and Revenue Departments. The bribe was allegedly paid for issuing No Objection Certificates (NOCs) for building permissions.
Officials believe that a significant portion of Kumar’s illicit wealth was amassed through corrupt practices related to the TGBPAS portal, which is used for granting building permissions. The ACB has stated that this operation is one of their largest actions against corruption in recent times, following the arrest of other high-profile officials earlier this year. In a similar case, former Director of Insurance Medical Services (IMS) Devika Rani had assets worth ₹30 crore seized by the ACB, and in another case, Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA) Director Shiv Balkrishna’s unregistered assets worth ₹9 crore were confiscated.
The case highlights the growing issue of corruption in government departments, with the ACB vowing to continue its efforts to uncover such illegal activities and bring those responsible to justice.
