Vijayawada, April 8 – A city court sent an Andhra Pradesh Endowments Department official to judicial custody on Wednesday in a case of disproportionate assets.
Kalingiri Shanti, Assistant Commissioner in the endowments department, was produced before the ACB court, which ordered her to be held in judicial custody until April 21. She was subsequently transferred to the Vijayawada district jail.
The Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) arrested Shanti after simultaneous raids at premises linked to her on Tuesday.
The anti-graft agency took action following information that she allegedly amassed wealth beyond her known sources of income.
ACB officials conducted searches for 10 hours at various locations, including Tadepalli, Undavalli, and Visakhapatnam. The searches were conducted at four locations in Tadepalli, including her residence, a garment shop belonging to her mother, and her sister’s residence.
They seized incriminating documents and discovered assets, including a residential flat in Visakhapatnam, a G+2 building at Kunchanapalli, 776 grams of gold ornaments, nearly 3 kg of silver articles, cash worth Rs 1.15 lakh, bank balances of about Rs 3 lakh, a Volkswagen Polo car, a motorcycle, and electronic gadgets.
Following the searches, the ACB registered a Disproportionate Assets (DA) case against the Assistant Commissioner under the Prevention of Corruption Act.
The official was also found to have a locker in a bank in Vijayawada. Further searches and valuation of assets were in progress.
Shanti was appointed as Assistant Commissioner in the Endowments Department through the Andhra Pradesh State Public Service Commission (APPSC) in 2020, and worked in Visakhapatnam and Vijayawada.
After the TDP-led coalition government came to power in 2024, Shanti was suspended for over an allegation of irregularities.
She was under suspension from July 2024 to March 2026.
The Endowments Department had initiated a departmental inquiry into the allegations against Shanti. The government had seriously taken the allegations against Shanti, including her recruitment procedure itself.
The suspension was lifted last month, and she was waiting for a posting.