DVAC probe on as tahsildar’s assets grow 800pc in 3 years

The assets in her name and that of her family members grew by more than 800 per cent in those three years from 2017 to 2019, the agency said in its FIR. 

The accused official, D Nirmala, indulged in corrupt activities and acquired a huge amount of wealth movable and immovable properties in her name and also in the name of her family members, charged the DVAC FIR. 

According to the anti-corruption sleuths, the assets that the family bought during these three years included an immovable property worth Rs 1.3 crore purchased in the name of her husband, T Ponraj, and registered at Pallavaram Sub-Registrar’s Office in March 2019. 

The assets Nirmala and family possessed at the beginning of the check period, January 1, 2017, was estimated to be worth Rs 17.5 lakh. But by the end of the check period, December 31, 2019, the assets grew to Rs 1.48 crore. In those three years, her official income was Rs 15.84 lakh. After calculating her likely savings and expenditure, the DVAC pegged her disproportionate assets to around Rs 1.24 crore. 

That is, the disproportionate assets that the family amassed in just three years was nearly 800 per cent of her known sources of income. Based on the finding, the DVAC Chennai City-1 team registered a case against Nirmala under the provisions of Prevention of Corruption Act.