After the ACB going on arrests in Kaleshwaram project irregularities case, now the ED has focused on cash transactions in this case. There are allegations that the project funds were illegally diverted into investments in its own companies and foreign expenses. The ED will seek details of the corruption case related to Muralidhar Rao, Noone Sridhar and Hariram Nayak from the ACB. During its raids, the ACB found over Rs 1,000 crore worth properties with those three engineers.
Through this investigation, it will examine in depth issues like misuse of project funds, benami transactions and acquisition of illegal assets. Former Engineer-in-Chief Muralidhar Rao, who played a key role in the construction of this project, was arrested by the ACB officials in a disproportionate assets case after allegations of corruption surfaced against him.
The ACB conducted searches at 10 places, including his residence in Banjara Hills in Hyderabad, and found assets worth about Rs 200 crore. This includes villas, flats, open plots, commercial buildings, bank deposits and gold. The ED has also focused on some other engineers who worked on this project.
The ED has intensified its investigation into irregularities such as diverting government money into investments in its own companies and organizing expensive destination weddings abroad. In this regard, allegations have been made against several people, including former Engineer-in-Chief Muralidhar Rao, Executive Engineer Noone Sridhar, and former Engineer-in-Chief Bhukya Hariram Nayak.
The ED has now also focused on the companies run by Muralidhar Rao’s son Abhishek Rao. There are allegations that Abhishek Rao diverted the money illegally earned through transactions related to the Kaleshwaram project into investments in companies. The ED has intensified its investigation into these investments.
The ED officials will seek details of the assets and transactions identified by the ACB in this case. Executive Engineer Noone Sridhar also worked in three packages in the Kaleshwaram project. He was arrested by the ACB in a disproportionate assets case. During searches conducted at 13 locations, assets like a 4500 sq ft flat, a villa, 19 residential plots, 16 acres of agricultural land and hotel investments were found.
Surprisingly, Sridhar spent crores of rupees in Thailand for his son’s wedding and organized a destination wedding. The ED has paid special attention to these expenses. It is investigating to identify the financial sources behind these transactions.
Former Engineer-in-Chief Bhukya Hariram Nayak was also arrested by the ACB in April in this case. During searches conducted at 13 locations, assets like luxurious villas, lands, gold ornaments and bank deposits were found. He is accused of playing a key role in the construction of the Kaleshwaram project and amassing assets through illegal transactions.