Karnataka: ED attaches assets of retired BWSSB chief engineer

Properties worth Rs 7.48 crore of a retired chief engineer of the Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) have been attached under the anti-money laundering law, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) said on Thursday.

The provisionally attached movable and immovable properties of S M Basavaraju include some deposits kept in bank accounts, 3.41 kg gold and diamond jewellery, two residential sites, a commercial complex and six residential flats in Bengaluru and Mysuru, it said in a statement.

The action has been taken under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and the assets are worth a total Rs 7.48 crore.

The ED case against the retired officer is based on a complaint and chargesheet filed by the Karanataka Lokayukta in 2018 wherein it was alleged that “Basavaraju had amassed wealth beyond his known sources of income and was in possession of disproportionate assets worth Rs 4.45 crore in excess to his known sources of income”.

The agency said its probe found that the officer “had amassed wealth beyond his legitimate sources of income and purchased various movable and immovable properties in his name or as benami properties, in the name of his family members, including his mother-in-law.”