The Lokayukta police in Madhya Pradesh conducted a raid at the house of a woman assistant engineer in Bhopal in connection with a disproportionate assets case. She was found to have items that could not have been procured with her regular salary, which included a Rs 30 lakh TV set, 10 luxury cars and a huge house.
Hema Meena, an assistant engineer in charge (contract) at the state police housing corporation, was discovered to have procured properties 232% disproportionate to her monthly wage of Rs 30,000 by a team from the Madhya Pradesh Lokayukta Special Police Establishment (SPE). To procure the property she has, her salary should have been Rs 18 lakh, according to the officials.
She stays in a 40-room bungalow built on 20,000 square feet of land registered in her father’s name, Ramswaroop Meena in Bilkhiriya near Bhopal. Its cost is estimated to be more than Rs 1 crore.
The anti-corruption agency carried out raids on her bungalow, farm, and office on Thursday, leading to the recovery of assets valued at almost 5 to 7 crore. The vast array of the fortune contained 100 dogs comprising of foreign breeds such as Pitbull and Dobermann, a comprehensive wireless communication system, mobile jammers, and several other valuables.
A roti-making machine worth Rs 2.50 lakh was also located which was used for making rotis to feed the dogs. The Lokayukta sleuths also seized a television priced at 30 lakh from there. Furthermore, 20 vehicles, including expensive four-wheelers like two trucks, one tanker and a Mahindra Thar, were found parked at her luxurious property. Her opulent farmhouse consisted of between 70 and 80 cows.
She used walkie-talkies to speak to her co-workers and seniors present in the sprawling mansion. The devices have also been seized by the Lokayukta team.
The accused also bought 20,000 square feet of property in the village of Bilkhiriya. She has also acquired land in Raisen and Vidisha. The anti-corruption watchdog also noted government property worth lakhs that belonged to the housing board in her farmhouse. Agricultural paraphernalia including harvesters worth lakhs, premium spirits and cigarettes were collected. A dairy was also spotted near it.
A case was filed against her in 2020 for having disproportionate assets, according to Lokayukta Deputy Superintendent of Police, Sanjay Shukla. After receiving the complaint, an investigation was started, and then the action was executed. The raids were conducted in Raisen, Vidisha and Bhopal.
Manu Vyas, Superintendent of Police, disclosed that search operations had been undertaken in three locations and that initial estimations suggested that the possessions had been appraised between 5 and 7 crore.
“We will have to take help from other departments as well in determining the actual value of whatever has been seized so far,” he added.
50 members of the SPE arrived at the upscale bungalow dressed in casual clothing. The security there, however, stopped them. They told the guards that they were from the animal husbandry department and also gained entry under the guise of repairing solar panels.
Preliminary findings indicated that she constructed her abode using materials intended for projects of the Madhya Pradesh Police Housing Corporation.
The engineer is a divorcee who lives in the Raisen district of Chapna village. She got a contractual position in 2011. She is currently employed as the Madhya Pradesh Police Housing And Infrastructure Development Corporation (MPPHC) associate engineer in charge. A case under the Prevention of Corruption Act has been filed against her.
There is a possibility of the involvement of other officers in the matter and further investigation into the matter is underway.
