Borewell scam: ED raids chief engineer’s office in B’luru civic agency
Bengaluru: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) officers conducted raids on the office of the Chief Engineer of the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) in connection with the alleged borewell scam worth Rs 9,000 crore, sources said on Tuesday.
A team of seven officials posted with the ED raided the BBMP office on Tuesday morning and continued the searches and inspection till late in the evening.
The central probe agency team has seized incriminating documents and digital evidence during the raid, sources added.
The ED sleuths have carried out the search operations in the presence of Chief Engineer B.S Prahlad.
The ED sleuths had also questioned assistant engineers and assistant executive engineers in connection with the borewell scam.
Sources said that the raid was conducted in connection with the Rs 9,000 crore scam concerning the drilling of borewells in Bengaluru city by the BBMP between 2016 and 2019.
A complaint was registered with the ED in connection with the borewell scam in 2021.
The ED had issued notice to the BBMP in this regard in 2022.
The central probe agency has also looked into the complaints over alleged corruption in executing the white topping works.
The delegation of BJP legislators from Bengaluru had filed a complaint with the ED in connection with the illegalities involving the drilling of borewells and white topping work.
In 2018-19, allegations of rampant corruption surfaced in this regard.
The BJP delegation had alleged that the BBMP had said that it had spent between Rs 12 to Rs 18 crore for every kilometre of white topping work in Bengaluru. They had raised suspicion of overspending of Rs 3,046 crore over 279 km of white topping work.
The complaint alleged that in the first phase for 93.37 km Rs 1,147.76 crore was spent, in the second phase Rs 758.56 crore was spent for 62.80 km and in the third phase, the BBMP spent Rs 1,139 crore for 123 km.
The ED is also looking into the alleged charges of money laundering.
The official statement is yet to be made in this regard by the ED.