Navi Mumbai tax scam: ACB finds malls and bungalows in babu's name

Prakash Kulkarni the suspended official is on the run right Kishor Dhole the computer operator who has also been bookedThe AntiCorruption Bureau ACB has opened a Pandoras box of suspended Deputy Municipal Commissioner Property Taxes of Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation NMMC Prakash Kulkarnis treachery Kulkarni who was booked by the ACB on Wednesday for misappropriating funds of Rs 68165 crore over seven years allegedly bought multiple properties worth Rs 12 crore across the state with his illgotten wealth Besides he allegedly carried out his fraud with the blessings of political bigwigsSources in the ACB told midday that following raids on 10 places investigating officials have found that Kulkarni who absconding has multiple properties in Mumbai Navi Mumbai Pune and Solapur including two row houses a few flats commercial shops plots an entertainment company a financial company and many plots of agricultural land He also allegedly coowns cinema halls Max and Maxus in Nerul and Palghar The raided places included three of Kulkarnis residences in Navi Mumbai Many incriminating documents pertaining to the alleged fraud were found during the searchesLikely to be worth moreSome of these properties are in his name and some in his family members The properties are estimated to be worth R12 crore The estimation may go up in the coming days We are investigating if these were bought made by Kulkarni from the illgotten wealth We will soon initiate a disproportionate assets inquiry against him said a senior ACB officialKulkarnis aide and auditor Dinesh Gawari who has also been booked by the ACB in the funds misappropriation case is suspected to own five residential flats in Navi Mumbai and Thane worth around Rs 3 croreBlessings of politicosACB sources said Kulkarni who was the chief collector and assessor of property taxes since 2007 fudged records during seven years of his tenure under the blessings of bigwigs of one political party They declined to mention the name of the partyKulkarni was suspended in May last year by NMMC Commissioner Tukaram Mundhe for administrative irregularities and was booked under relevant sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act and the IPC Mundhe sounded off the top brass of the ACB about suspected highlevel corruption and fraudulent practices in the NMMC and sought a thorough inquiry by it After a threemonthlong inquiry the Thane unit of the ACB booked an offence on Wednesday said Bipin Kumar Singh additional director general ACBManipulated recordsAn ACB official said Kulkarni was responsible for preparing printing and distributing bills of property taxes and their collection But Kulkarni with two Gawari and computer operator Kishor Dhole fudged entries to exempt nearly 3301 property holders from paying their duesThe system was rejigged to leave out the names of these property holders from the defaulters list Kulkarnis this action caused a loss of R681 crore to the NMMC in over seven years another senior ACB official said Besides he allegedly allowed leeway to holders of 18 properties by feeding in smaller tax bills against their names in the systemAnother ACB official said he also issued noobjection certificates to properties holders with large dues In several cases he issued two duplicate bills against one property for the same periodSources said in the last few years the property tax collection department was managed by only a handful of officials who were under Kulkarnis direct command The ACBs findings show that Kulkarni misused his power and position and indulged in criminal misconduct and fraudulent practices to gain peculiar gains from property holders and caused a huge loss to the NMMC said Nishandar Sangramsinh superintendent of police Thane ACBKulkarni and the two aides have been booked under sections 131D and 132 of the Prevention of Corruption Act and 120B criminal conspiracy 420 cheating 467 forgery of valuable security and 471 sing as genuine a forged document or electronic record of the IPCWe are looking into who worked in connivance with Kulkarni We have sealed the Vashi and Kharghar residences of Kulkarni said Sangramsinh Prior to his suspension Kulkarni was felicitated for earning a record revenue of R516 crore for the NMMC mdash R109 crore more from the previous financial year10No of places raided so far by the ACB7No of years over which Kulkarni tampered records