Gujarat: ACB files DA case against suspended senior officer after 11-year probe

Ahmedabad, June 22 (IANS) The Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) has registered a disproportionate assets case worth Rs 3.56 crore against a senior Gujarat Administrative Service officer following a preliminary inquiry covering the period from 2012 to 2023.

The case has been filed against Ketaki Vyas, then Resident Additional Collector in Anand district, and a Senior Scale officer of the Gujarat Administrative Service (Class-I), who is currently under suspension.

According to the ACB, the alleged disproportionate assets amount to Rs 3,56,03,910, equivalent to 68.84 per cent above her known sources of income during the check period.

The ACB said the case was registered under its special drive conducted under the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 (as amended in 2018), aimed at identifying public servants allegedly using their official position to accumulate assets disproportionate to their lawful income or to acquire properties in their own names or in the names of relatives and associates.

A preliminary inquiry into the allegations was conducted by Police Inspector A.K. Chauhan of ACB Field Unit-1, Ahmedabad, and supervised by Deputy Director (Administration) Bharti Pandya.

The inquiry findings relate to the check period from April 1, 2012 to March 31, 2023. According to the bureau, Vyas is alleged to have misused her official position during this period to acquire assets beyond her known sources of income.

The alleged excess assets amounting to Rs 3,56,03,910 were reportedly invested in movable and immovable properties held in her own name as well as in the names of family members.

An offence has been registered at the ACB Police Station in Ahmedabad under Sections 13(1)(e) and 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, along with Sections 13(1)(b) and 13(2) of the amended Prevention of Corruption Act, 2018.

The ACB also said it is continuing its wider drive to identify disproportionate and benami assets of public servants across various government departments, including properties such as agricultural land, residential and commercial buildings, vehicles, bank accounts and lockers, as well as assets held in the names of associates.

It has urged citizens to report instances of alleged corruption or illegal demands for bribes through its toll-free number and telephone numbers.

–IANS

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