The Anti-Corruption Bureau on Monday caught a Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation town planning supervisor while she was allegedly accepting Rs 4 lakh in Hyderabad’s Mehdipatnam area, in a case involving an alleged Rs 8 lakh demand linked to building construction.
According to ACB officials, Tulasiram Sunitha, Town Planning Supervisor for Circle-33 in the GHMC’s Golconda zone, had demanded the money from a complainant in return for extending an official favour. The ACB said the Rs 4 lakh seized during the operation was the first instalment of the alleged bribe.
The alleged favour was connected to the enforcement of town-planning decisions affecting the complainant’s construction activity. Sunitha allegedly agreed to ignore speaking orders issued by the GHMC Deputy Commissioner, allow the complainant to proceed with building construction, refrain from further harassment and provide cooperation in the future, the officials said.
The operation followed a complaint received by the ACB. Acting on it, officials laid a trap and caught Sunitha while she was accepting the money. The tainted cash was recovered from her possession, according to the agency’s account of the operation.
The ACB also seized Rs 2.5 lakh in unaccounted cash found in Sunitha’s possession during the operation. The seizure was recorded separately from the alleged bribe amount, and the agency identified the cash as unaccounted money.
The case highlights the role of GHMC town-planning officials in regulating construction and enforcing municipal orders in Hyderabad. Speaking orders issued by senior municipal authorities can affect whether construction activity proceeds, which makes the administration of such directions a significant point of interaction between residents, builders and the civic body.
The ACB’s action follows the complaint and the alleged acceptance of the first instalment. The agency did not state in the supplied account whether the alleged Rs 8 lakh demand involved any other officials or whether the complainant’s construction was ultimately permitted under the applicable rules.
Sunitha was being produced before the First Additional Special Judge for SPE and ACB cases at Nampally for judicial remand. Further proceedings in the case will take place before the special court.
