The Bihar Special Vigilance Unit has registered a disproportionate-assets case against Gopalganj Additional District Magistrate Rajeshwari Pandey and conducted court-authorised searches at four locations in Patna, Gopalganj and Rohtas. Investigators said they recovered cash, jewellery, property documents and financial records during the operation.
According to the SVU, Pandey is accused of accumulating assets worth more than Rs 2.50 crore disproportionate to known sources of income. The agency calculated the alleged excess at 135.23%. The case was registered after verification of what SVU ADGP Sudhanshu Kumar described as credible information.
The searches were conducted on Friday under warrants issued by a court. The locations included Pandey’s flat in Patna, his ancestral home, his office and his residence in Gopalganj. The SVU said documents recovered during the searches indicated assets and investments worth Rs 3.12 crore. Investigators are now examining the property holdings and financial investments linked to the case.
At the Patna flat, officials recovered Rs 1.85 lakh in cash and jewellery valued at around Rs 32 lakh, the agency said. They also found documents relating to 12 properties valued at Rs 1.32 crore, fixed-deposit papers worth Rs 8.5 lakh and records of 35 bank accounts holding Rs 1.49 crore.
An FIR has been registered under provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act. Senior DSP Love Kumar has been assigned to investigate the case, according to the report. The SVU has not described the alleged assets as finally established wrongdoing; the figures and documents are part of an ongoing investigation into whether Pandey’s holdings exceed his known sources of income.
Pandey joined government service in 2010, according to the information released in the report. The searches and seizure of records are expected to form part of the agency’s scrutiny of the official’s property ownership, bank accounts, fixed deposits and other investments.
The investigation places the focus on how assets held by public officials are assessed against declared income and service records. In this case, the next steps will depend on the SVU’s examination of the documents and financial records recovered from the four locations. Senior DSP Love Kumar is continuing the investigation.
