Desaraju Surya
Hyderabad: Telangana Rashtra Samiti appears all set to sweep the by-elections in the Telangana region of Andhra Pradesh as trends in 12 constituencies indicate just 48 hours ahead of the polling date.
Ten out of 12 is likely to be the separatist party’s score with the ruling Congress and the TRS having a 50-50 chance in two segments.
It’s only the “Telangana sentiment” that gives TRS the edge in the by-election battle. The development mantra, coupled with the claim that it’s the Congress alone that could ultimately deliver statehood for Telangana, seem to have not cut any ice as the ruling party finds itself in a hopeless position.
A senior Congress leader like Rajya Sabha member V Hanumantha Rao observed: “The (Telangana) sentiment is so strong that nothing else will work.”
The fight over Babhli issue has done no good to the principal opposition Telugu Desam Party’s electoral prospects as it will have to be content with either the second place or the third in many constituencies.
By-elections will be held to the 12 constituencies on July 27 and counting of votes will take place on 30th. Since more than 64 candidates are in fray, ballot papers are being used in five Assembly segments Yellareddy, Korutla, Siricilla, Huzurabad and Warangal West. Electronic Voting Machines will be used in the remaining seven segments. In all 435 candidates are in the fray in all the 12 segments.
All eyes, however, are on the Nizamabad Urban Assembly segment where Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee president Dharmapuri Srinivas is desperately seeking a win over his Bharatiya Janata Party rival Y Lakshminarayana.
Having tasted a bitter defeat in the 2009 general elections, Srinivas is using all the tricks to win the by-election. “I will get to occupy the highest position (read Chief Minister) in the state politics if elected as an MLA. Also, I will get your dream of a separate Telangana state come true if elected,” Srinivas has been repeatedly claiming during his campaign. In fact, this has been Srinivas’ theme song in the by-poll campaign.
Nizamabad Urban segment has a large chunk of Muslim voters who stayed away from polling in 2009. This resulted in Srinivas’ defeat then as the BJP candidate Lakshminarayana romped home with a comfortable majority of 11,015 votes. This time, however, Srinivas has held a series of meetings with various communities, including Muslims, pleading with them to elect him to the Legislature so that he could win back a lost chance (of becoming the Chief Minister). Srinivas pegged all his hopes on Muslim votes, numbering about 75,000, to realize his dreams.
The BJP candidate is banking on the Telangana sentiment and the “sympathy” factor over his resignation for the statehood cause in February. The TDP is nowhere in contest in this segment.
The TRS is hell bent on wrecking the PCC chief’s victory chances in Nizamabad Urban as much as the Congress is seeking to defeat TRS president K Chandrasekhar Rao’s son K T Rama Rao in Siricilla constituency. Rama Rao scraped through a bare margin of 171 votes in 2009 in a multi-cornered contest.
It was a TRS rebel candidate K K Mahender Reddy who gave Rama Rao a run for his money. Now, Mahender is the Congress candidate in Siricilla but the political scene underwent a lot of change in the last one year.
Rama Rao, a rank “outsider” in Siricilla in 2009, built his base since his election for the first time as an MLA, edging out Mahender Reddy. The Telangana sentiment is the main plank on which the TRS nominee is seeking re-election this time.
KCR’s nephew T Harish Rao is one candidate who faces no real contest in the Siddipet constituency. Everyone is betting only on the majority with which Harish will win the seat in the by-election, having won the 2009 general election with a margin of 64,677 votes.
While the TDP can hope to secure the second place, with actor Babu Mohan in the fray, the Congress is desperately fighting to win at least the security deposit that it had to forego in the last two elections.
The Congress fielded three former ministers Md Ali Shabbir, G Vinod and J Ratnakar Rao from Yellareddy, Chennur (SC) and Korutla constituencies. All of them having been seeking votes claiming they would get back into the state Cabinet, if elected, and develop the respective constituencies. All three, however, are facing rough weather in these segments like in 2009 when they were trounced comprehensively.
Former MP Indrakaran Reddy of Congress is giving a semblance of fight to his TRS rival Kaveti Sammaiah in Sirpur constituency. But the internal wrangling in the Congress may mar his prospects. Other aspirants for Sirpur seat like Koneru Konappa and Premsagar Rao are said to be working against Indrakaran. However, Indrakaran succeeded to win-over Konappa and secure his support but Premsagar Rao is said to have not fallen in line. Indrakaran also has been going round with the claim that he would become a minister if elected to the Assembly.
In Warangal West Assembly constituency as well, the Congress is locked in an intense fight with the TRS. Congress’ K Dayasagar Rao has a strong base in the segment and the sympathy that he lost the 2009 polls.
TRS’ D Vinay Bhaskar, who won with a margin of over 6,600 votes against Dayasagar last time, is banking on the Telangana sentiment. Former MLA Vem Narender Reddy of the TDP is lagging behind the two main contenders in this segment.
The fight for Huzurabad seat in Karimnagar district looks interesting as the three main candidates E Rajender (TRS), M Damodar Reddy (TDP) and V Krishnamohan Rao (Congress) are mighty. Apart from the sentiment factor, his good relations with the local people should stand Rajender in good stead. The TDP’s strong cadre base in Huzurabad should help Damodar Reddy put up a good fight. The Congress has deployed senior leaders like Karimnagar MP Ponnam Prabhakar and Chief Whip Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka to ensure Krishnamohan Rao’s success.
The Vemulawada seat in Karimnagar district was won by Chennamaneni Ramesh of TDP in 2009. Ramesh, however, switched sides to the TRS after he quit the Assembly in February this year on the statehood issue. The large chunk of voters belonging to his Velama community and the support of BJP will be the additional advantages working in Ramesh’s favour apart from the Telangana sentiment and the sympathy over his resignation. Ramesh is the nephew of former Union Minister Ch Vidyasagar Rao of BJP.
In Dharmapuri and Mancherial too the TRS may find the going smooth though the TDP is giving some fight in Mancherial.
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TRUTH, JOY & SERVICE
Sunday, 25 July 2010
Friday, 16 July 2010
License to ridicule
Desaraju Surya
Hyderabad: The “Citizen-Friendly Services (CFS) of Transport Department” of the Andhra Pradesh government seem to have touched some ridiculous highs and lows.
The Transport Department issued driving licenses in as many as 551 cases in the recent past to persons well over the age of 100 years.
Likewise, 1,280 teenagers below the age of 16 too have benefited from the Department’s munificence as they conveniently secured driving licenses in various parts of the state, in clear violation of Section 14 of the Motor Vehicles Act.
Interestingly, in some cases, the dates on the driving licenses indicated that the holder was born well after the license issue date. In 4,019 cases, the date of driving test was noted to be prior to even the date of application.
These glaring lapses were picked up during a performance review of the Transport Department by the Comptroller and Auditor General during the year 2008-09.
The CAG report was tabled in the state Assembly.
The CAG pointed out that learners’ licenses were issued “beyond permissible limits” in 18,626 cases, despite the MV Act stipulating that a learner’s license shall be valid only for a period of six months.
In one particular case, an applicant “passed” the driving test though he scored zero marks. The minimum marks required for issuing a driving license is 16 out of 20.
It also noted that validity certificates for 41,978 vehicles were issued for a period of over 15 years though the certificates have to be renewed every five years on completion of 15 years.
The CAG slammed the Transport Department over the “gross inconsistencies\improbabilities” in the CFS stating they were due to “lack of proper validation and input controls.”
In 9,105 cases, the tax payment date was beyond the system date.
In 15 cases, validity of the date of registration of vehicles was shown prior or same as the date of issue of the registration certificate.
In six cases, validity of international driving permit expired before the issue date.
It was also found that the fitness certificate in 1.36 lakh cases involving a fee of Rs 10.74 crore was renewed for more than one year, contrary to the provisions and which have serious implications on the road safety, the CAG noted.
Hyderabad: The “Citizen-Friendly Services (CFS) of Transport Department” of the Andhra Pradesh government seem to have touched some ridiculous highs and lows.
The Transport Department issued driving licenses in as many as 551 cases in the recent past to persons well over the age of 100 years.
Likewise, 1,280 teenagers below the age of 16 too have benefited from the Department’s munificence as they conveniently secured driving licenses in various parts of the state, in clear violation of Section 14 of the Motor Vehicles Act.
Interestingly, in some cases, the dates on the driving licenses indicated that the holder was born well after the license issue date. In 4,019 cases, the date of driving test was noted to be prior to even the date of application.
These glaring lapses were picked up during a performance review of the Transport Department by the Comptroller and Auditor General during the year 2008-09.
The CAG report was tabled in the state Assembly.
The CAG pointed out that learners’ licenses were issued “beyond permissible limits” in 18,626 cases, despite the MV Act stipulating that a learner’s license shall be valid only for a period of six months.
In one particular case, an applicant “passed” the driving test though he scored zero marks. The minimum marks required for issuing a driving license is 16 out of 20.
It also noted that validity certificates for 41,978 vehicles were issued for a period of over 15 years though the certificates have to be renewed every five years on completion of 15 years.
The CAG slammed the Transport Department over the “gross inconsistencies\improbabilities” in the CFS stating they were due to “lack of proper validation and input controls.”
In 9,105 cases, the tax payment date was beyond the system date.
In 15 cases, validity of the date of registration of vehicles was shown prior or same as the date of issue of the registration certificate.
In six cases, validity of international driving permit expired before the issue date.
It was also found that the fitness certificate in 1.36 lakh cases involving a fee of Rs 10.74 crore was renewed for more than one year, contrary to the provisions and which have serious implications on the road safety, the CAG noted.
Saturday, 26 June 2010
Statins and their affects
Desaraju Surya
Hyderabad: Long-term administration of statins, the anti-cholesterol drugs, could lead to anxiety and major depression in patients while a minor portion of them could also develop suicidal tendencies, scientists at the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology here have established. The team of scientists led by Amitabha Chattopadhyay studied the effect of statin on human serotonin receptors expressed in animal cells and established the link between use of cholesterol-lowering drugs and mood disorders. “The novel results of our study represent the first report describing the effect of long-term cholesterol depletion on this type of neurotransmitter receptor and suggest that chronic, low cholesterol levels in the brain may trigger anxiety and depression,” Chattopadhyay said. Chattopadhyay’s study has been published in the latest editon of Biochemistry, brought out by the American Chemical Society. “Our results assume broader significance in the context of previous observations that symptoms of anxiety and major depression are apparent in humans upon long-term administration of statin and cortical cholesterol content is found to be lower in mood disorders. This is relevant since some statins have been reported to cross the blood-brain barrier and their use has been associated with a reduced risk of Alzheimer’s disease,” Chattopadhyay pointed out. “Only a certain percentage of those who use statins are prone to mood disorders. Our findings are based only on cell study and we need to conduct clinical trials. This is only a tip of the iceberg and we are planning to conduct animal experiments to take our research further,” Chattopadhyay said. Mood disorder was, however, not a common side-effect of the use of statins but the percentage of those prone to it could not quantified right now, he said in reply to a question. “Our study will contribute to the development of new drug and even the existing drugs could be modified to reduce the side-effects like myopathy , kidney failure and headache, apart from mood alteration,” the senior scientist noted. Statins, the widely-used anti-cholesterol drugs, currently have a worldwide market of 25 million USD, including a Rs 1000 crore market in India per annum. Research scientists Yamuna Devi Paila, Sourav Ganguly, Sandeep Shrivastava and Thomas J Pucadyil assisted Chattopadhyay in conducting the study.
Hyderabad: Long-term administration of statins, the anti-cholesterol drugs, could lead to anxiety and major depression in patients while a minor portion of them could also develop suicidal tendencies, scientists at the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology here have established. The team of scientists led by Amitabha Chattopadhyay studied the effect of statin on human serotonin receptors expressed in animal cells and established the link between use of cholesterol-lowering drugs and mood disorders. “The novel results of our study represent the first report describing the effect of long-term cholesterol depletion on this type of neurotransmitter receptor and suggest that chronic, low cholesterol levels in the brain may trigger anxiety and depression,” Chattopadhyay said. Chattopadhyay’s study has been published in the latest editon of Biochemistry, brought out by the American Chemical Society. “Our results assume broader significance in the context of previous observations that symptoms of anxiety and major depression are apparent in humans upon long-term administration of statin and cortical cholesterol content is found to be lower in mood disorders. This is relevant since some statins have been reported to cross the blood-brain barrier and their use has been associated with a reduced risk of Alzheimer’s disease,” Chattopadhyay pointed out. “Only a certain percentage of those who use statins are prone to mood disorders. Our findings are based only on cell study and we need to conduct clinical trials. This is only a tip of the iceberg and we are planning to conduct animal experiments to take our research further,” Chattopadhyay said. Mood disorder was, however, not a common side-effect of the use of statins but the percentage of those prone to it could not quantified right now, he said in reply to a question. “Our study will contribute to the development of new drug and even the existing drugs could be modified to reduce the side-effects like myopathy , kidney failure and headache, apart from mood alteration,” the senior scientist noted. Statins, the widely-used anti-cholesterol drugs, currently have a worldwide market of 25 million USD, including a Rs 1000 crore market in India per annum. Research scientists Yamuna Devi Paila, Sourav Ganguly, Sandeep Shrivastava and Thomas J Pucadyil assisted Chattopadhyay in conducting the study.
Sunday, 30 May 2010
A game of one-upmanship over Telangana
Desaraju Surya
HYDERABAD: It was a clear game of one-upmanship that disturbed peace in Andhra Pradesh once again.
Kadapa MP Y S Jaganmohan Reddy, Telangana Rashtra Samiti president K Chandrasekhar Rao, some Congress leaders hailing from Telangana region and also a few leaders of Telugu Desam Party were all players in this murky game.
The game began after Jagan announced his programme early this month to tour Warangal district as part of the “Odarpu Yatra” to condole the families whose members allegedly died either of heartbreak or committed suicide following the tragic death of his father Y S Rajasekhara Reddy in September last.
Jagan had already toured West Godavari and Khammam districts last month on a similar condolence trip and evoked good response from people. In fact, Khammam district is also part of Telangana region but Jagan did not face any opposition to his tour with only some murmurs of protest raised by the pro-Telangana groups.
Buoyed by this, the young MP announced his plan to tour Warangal district, which is the hotbed of separate Telangana agitation.
Fearing that the success of Jagan’s yatra could prove that the separate statehood demand is on the wane, Chandrasekhar Rao raised objection to it saying they would not allow a person who openly supported a unified Andhra Pradesh to tour Telangana.
Andhra Pradesh, particularly Telangana, remained peaceful since March this year after the violence that erupted in December over the separate statehood issue.
Separatist elements like KCR and Kodandaram – who are allegedly minting money in the name of the separate statehood “movement” – did not shun their inflammatory talk but people remained restrained.
Interestingly, leaders from Andhra and Rayalaseema said they would roll out a red-carpet for Chandrasekhar Rao if he visited their regions. “He is most welcome to not only visit any place in Andhra or Rayalaseema but also speak on his demand for a separate Telangana state. He is very much entitled to do this,” leaders from these regions said as the TRS chief planned to Vijayawada on the invitation of Jai Andhra Samiti.
However, other pro-Telangana groups vowed to block Jagan’s tour at any cost even as some Congress leaders from the region joined chorus.
Beginning with Rajya Sabha and Congress Central Working Committee member K Keshava Rao, 11 party MPs from Telangana lobbied with the ‘high command’ to get Jagan cancel his Odarpu Yatra.
The Kadapa MP, however, said his tour had nothing to do with the party and it was “purely personal.” “It is my duty to wipe the tears of the families which lost their kin following the death of my father. There is no politics involved in it,” Jagan asserted.
He pointed out that he never made any political remarks during his tour of Khammam district that was also part of Telangana.
Amidst this, Telugu Desam Party senior legislator from Warangal district E Dayakar Rao announced that they would not let Jagan land his foot in Warangal since his father YSR had done a lot of injustice to the district. “How can we allow him to tour the region when his father, as Chief Minister, did a lot of injustice to us on various issues? Moreover, why was not Jagan consoling the families whose kin died for the sake of a separate Telangana state,” Dayakar Rao questioned.
Soon, his party colleagues from Telangana region supported him even as TDP chief Chandrababu Naidu maintained that in a democracy every individual has a right to visit any place of his choice.
The controversy over Jagan’s tour notwithstanding, Chief Minister K Rosaiah repeatedly maintained that Jagan’s tour was “his personal affair” but the government would take adequate steps to maintain peace.
However, the Odarpu Yatra ended in an anti-climax on May 28 as Jagan was forced to abandon his plans after violence broke out in Mahbubabad, the yatra's starting point.
HYDERABAD: It was a clear game of one-upmanship that disturbed peace in Andhra Pradesh once again.
Kadapa MP Y S Jaganmohan Reddy, Telangana Rashtra Samiti president K Chandrasekhar Rao, some Congress leaders hailing from Telangana region and also a few leaders of Telugu Desam Party were all players in this murky game.
The game began after Jagan announced his programme early this month to tour Warangal district as part of the “Odarpu Yatra” to condole the families whose members allegedly died either of heartbreak or committed suicide following the tragic death of his father Y S Rajasekhara Reddy in September last.
Jagan had already toured West Godavari and Khammam districts last month on a similar condolence trip and evoked good response from people. In fact, Khammam district is also part of Telangana region but Jagan did not face any opposition to his tour with only some murmurs of protest raised by the pro-Telangana groups.
Buoyed by this, the young MP announced his plan to tour Warangal district, which is the hotbed of separate Telangana agitation.
Fearing that the success of Jagan’s yatra could prove that the separate statehood demand is on the wane, Chandrasekhar Rao raised objection to it saying they would not allow a person who openly supported a unified Andhra Pradesh to tour Telangana.
Andhra Pradesh, particularly Telangana, remained peaceful since March this year after the violence that erupted in December over the separate statehood issue.
Separatist elements like KCR and Kodandaram – who are allegedly minting money in the name of the separate statehood “movement” – did not shun their inflammatory talk but people remained restrained.
Interestingly, leaders from Andhra and Rayalaseema said they would roll out a red-carpet for Chandrasekhar Rao if he visited their regions. “He is most welcome to not only visit any place in Andhra or Rayalaseema but also speak on his demand for a separate Telangana state. He is very much entitled to do this,” leaders from these regions said as the TRS chief planned to Vijayawada on the invitation of Jai Andhra Samiti.
However, other pro-Telangana groups vowed to block Jagan’s tour at any cost even as some Congress leaders from the region joined chorus.
Beginning with Rajya Sabha and Congress Central Working Committee member K Keshava Rao, 11 party MPs from Telangana lobbied with the ‘high command’ to get Jagan cancel his Odarpu Yatra.
The Kadapa MP, however, said his tour had nothing to do with the party and it was “purely personal.” “It is my duty to wipe the tears of the families which lost their kin following the death of my father. There is no politics involved in it,” Jagan asserted.
He pointed out that he never made any political remarks during his tour of Khammam district that was also part of Telangana.
Amidst this, Telugu Desam Party senior legislator from Warangal district E Dayakar Rao announced that they would not let Jagan land his foot in Warangal since his father YSR had done a lot of injustice to the district. “How can we allow him to tour the region when his father, as Chief Minister, did a lot of injustice to us on various issues? Moreover, why was not Jagan consoling the families whose kin died for the sake of a separate Telangana state,” Dayakar Rao questioned.
Soon, his party colleagues from Telangana region supported him even as TDP chief Chandrababu Naidu maintained that in a democracy every individual has a right to visit any place of his choice.
The controversy over Jagan’s tour notwithstanding, Chief Minister K Rosaiah repeatedly maintained that Jagan’s tour was “his personal affair” but the government would take adequate steps to maintain peace.
However, the Odarpu Yatra ended in an anti-climax on May 28 as Jagan was forced to abandon his plans after violence broke out in Mahbubabad, the yatra's starting point.
Tuesday, 4 May 2010
Arrest of a "corrupt" IAS officer in Andhra Pradesh
Desaraju Surya
Hyderabad: The arrest of Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer M Jaganmohan by sleuths of the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) in Hyderabad today in connection with a disproportionate assets case could be the beginning of more such cases to come soon.
The Andhra Pradesh government recently gave its go-ahead to the ACB to proceed against officers belonging to All India Services (IAS, Indian Police Service and Indian Forest Service) of the state cadre who have been facing charges of corruption.
The ACB made out cases of corruption, including possession of assets disproportionate to their legitimate sources of income, against 22 top-ranking officers. The list includes 15 officers belonging to IAS, IPS and IFS.
“In eight cases involving AIS officers, the government has accorded requisite permission for us to proceed ahead. We shall now focus on these cases,” a top official of ACB said. He, however, did not like to reveal the names of these officers as it could hamper the cases.
In fact, at a review meeting of the ACB last week, Chief Minister K Rosaiah reportedly directed its Director General K Aravinda Rao to trap the “big sharks” and not just the “small fish” so as to create a “fear” among the corrupt elements in the administration.
Sources in ACB said the raid on Jaganmohan, a 1999-batch IAS officer posted as Joint Collector-1 of Ranga Reddy district, was carried out after many complaints about his alleged involvement in illegal land deals were received by the Chief Minister’s Office. The ACB unearthed assets worth over Rs 20 crore in the raids carried out on his official residence, office chamber and other properties besides his relatives’ houses in Hyderabad today.
“This is probably the first such case against a serving IAS officer in recent memory. In April 2007, an IPS officer J G Murali was arrested in a disproportionate assets case when he was serving as Superintendent of Police, Visakhapatnam (Rural), with his wealth running into several crore rupees,” a senior ACB official recalled.
Though another officer Harshavardhan was also arrested in connection with a similar case in November last year, it happened a few months before he was inducted into the IAS. In his case, ACB unearthed assets worth over Rs 8 crore but he succeeded in getting into IAS through an order from the Central Administrative Tribunal.
Jaganmohan’s arrest has become a point of intense debate among IAS officers in the state today. “There are many other black sheep within our ranks. Jaganmohan’s arrest should at least become a deterrent for the corrupt officers in our ranks,” a senior IAS officer remarked.
A Brief about Jaganmohan's Case:
The Central Investigation Unit of the ACB raided the residence of M Jaganmohan, a 1999-batch IAS officer currently posted as Joint Collector-1 of Ranga Reddy district, and seized three kilograms of gold, Rs 15 lakh in cash and many property documents. Bank balances amounting to Rs 12 lakh and investments in life insurance policies, national savings and Kisan Vikas Patras amounting to Rs 15 lakh, household articles worth Rs four lakh and a car worth Rs seven lakh were also seized in the raid, according to ACB Joint Director Sampath Kumar.
In all nine special teams of ACB simultaneously raided the official residence of Jaganmohan on Road No. 13 Banjara Hills, his relatives house at Kundanbagh, his office chamber in the Ranga Reddy district Collectorate and other places, and seized documents related to his properties in Hyderabad, Visakhapatnam and Ranga Reddy district, sources in the ACB said.
The IAS officer also owned two houses in Hyderabad city, six flats in Hyderabad and Visakhapatnam and eight house sites in Ranga Reddy district.
Some incriminating documents were also seized from his office chamber in the district Collectorate, ACB sources added.
Jaganmohan, an MSc., PhD and M Ed, joined state revenue service in December 1990 and was inducted into IAS in January 2005 and allotted the 1999 batch. His wife is a revenue divisional officer-cadre officer currently posted in the Urban Land Ceiling wing of the state revenue department.
He was hand-picked for the Ranga Reddy Joint Collector's post in February 2008 by an "advisor" to government allegedly to settle some land deals.
Hyderabad: The arrest of Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer M Jaganmohan by sleuths of the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) in Hyderabad today in connection with a disproportionate assets case could be the beginning of more such cases to come soon.
The Andhra Pradesh government recently gave its go-ahead to the ACB to proceed against officers belonging to All India Services (IAS, Indian Police Service and Indian Forest Service) of the state cadre who have been facing charges of corruption.
The ACB made out cases of corruption, including possession of assets disproportionate to their legitimate sources of income, against 22 top-ranking officers. The list includes 15 officers belonging to IAS, IPS and IFS.
“In eight cases involving AIS officers, the government has accorded requisite permission for us to proceed ahead. We shall now focus on these cases,” a top official of ACB said. He, however, did not like to reveal the names of these officers as it could hamper the cases.
In fact, at a review meeting of the ACB last week, Chief Minister K Rosaiah reportedly directed its Director General K Aravinda Rao to trap the “big sharks” and not just the “small fish” so as to create a “fear” among the corrupt elements in the administration.
Sources in ACB said the raid on Jaganmohan, a 1999-batch IAS officer posted as Joint Collector-1 of Ranga Reddy district, was carried out after many complaints about his alleged involvement in illegal land deals were received by the Chief Minister’s Office. The ACB unearthed assets worth over Rs 20 crore in the raids carried out on his official residence, office chamber and other properties besides his relatives’ houses in Hyderabad today.
“This is probably the first such case against a serving IAS officer in recent memory. In April 2007, an IPS officer J G Murali was arrested in a disproportionate assets case when he was serving as Superintendent of Police, Visakhapatnam (Rural), with his wealth running into several crore rupees,” a senior ACB official recalled.
Though another officer Harshavardhan was also arrested in connection with a similar case in November last year, it happened a few months before he was inducted into the IAS. In his case, ACB unearthed assets worth over Rs 8 crore but he succeeded in getting into IAS through an order from the Central Administrative Tribunal.
Jaganmohan’s arrest has become a point of intense debate among IAS officers in the state today. “There are many other black sheep within our ranks. Jaganmohan’s arrest should at least become a deterrent for the corrupt officers in our ranks,” a senior IAS officer remarked.
A Brief about Jaganmohan's Case:
The Central Investigation Unit of the ACB raided the residence of M Jaganmohan, a 1999-batch IAS officer currently posted as Joint Collector-1 of Ranga Reddy district, and seized three kilograms of gold, Rs 15 lakh in cash and many property documents. Bank balances amounting to Rs 12 lakh and investments in life insurance policies, national savings and Kisan Vikas Patras amounting to Rs 15 lakh, household articles worth Rs four lakh and a car worth Rs seven lakh were also seized in the raid, according to ACB Joint Director Sampath Kumar.
In all nine special teams of ACB simultaneously raided the official residence of Jaganmohan on Road No. 13 Banjara Hills, his relatives house at Kundanbagh, his office chamber in the Ranga Reddy district Collectorate and other places, and seized documents related to his properties in Hyderabad, Visakhapatnam and Ranga Reddy district, sources in the ACB said.
The IAS officer also owned two houses in Hyderabad city, six flats in Hyderabad and Visakhapatnam and eight house sites in Ranga Reddy district.
Some incriminating documents were also seized from his office chamber in the district Collectorate, ACB sources added.
Jaganmohan, an MSc., PhD and M Ed, joined state revenue service in December 1990 and was inducted into IAS in January 2005 and allotted the 1999 batch. His wife is a revenue divisional officer-cadre officer currently posted in the Urban Land Ceiling wing of the state revenue department.
He was hand-picked for the Ranga Reddy Joint Collector's post in February 2008 by an "advisor" to government allegedly to settle some land deals.
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