‘Raided officials amassed wealth 77% to 879% more than their known sources of income’
The Hindu
ACB officials assess value of seized assets
A day after the Anti-Corruption Bureau seized movable and immovable properties from 15 government officials across the State, officials conducted initial evaluation: the amassed wealth allegedly ranged between 77-879% disproportionate to their known sources of income. Hundreds of ACB officials and personnel carried out simultaneous operations at 68 locations and seized gold, silver, cash documents related to properties and bank records.
While a section of officials began to assess the value of the seized properties, other teams continued the operations on Thursday opening bank lockers belonging to the officials. “The estimation was done based on the documents produced by the accused officials and information gathered from various sources,” said the ACB.
Hampi, the UNESCO-recognised historical site, was the capital of the Vijayanagara empire from 1336 to 1565. Foreign travellers from Persia, Europe and other parts of the world have chronicled the wealth of the place and the unique cultural mores of this kingdom built on the banks of the Tungabhadra river. There are fine descriptions to be found of its temples, farms, markets and trading links, remnants of which one can see in the ruins now. The Literature, architecture of this era continue inspire awe.
Unfurling the zine handed to us at the start of the walk, we use brightly-coloured markers to draw squiggly cables across the page, starting from a sepia-toned vintage photograph of the telegraph office. Iz, who goes by the pronouns they/them, explains, “This building is still standing, though it shut down in 2013,” they say, pointing out that telegraphy, which started in Bengaluru in 1854, was an instrument of colonial power and control. “The British colonised lands via telegraph cables, something known as the All Red Line.”
The festival in Bengaluru is happening at various locations, including ATREE in Jakkur, Bangalore Creative Circus in Yeshwantpur, Courtyard Koota in Kengeri, and Medai the Stage in Koramangala. The festival will also take place in various cities across Karnataka including Tumakuru, Ramanagara, Mandya, Kolar, Chikkaballapura, Hassan, Chitradurga, Davangere, Chamarajanagar and Mysuru.