Former IAF man amassed' Rs 11.9 crore

Hyderabad/Guntur: The CBI, which had registered a case of disproportionate assets against a former squadron leader of Indian Air Force who allegedly amassed Rs 11.9- crore in assets, has booked former MP of Tenali in Guntur district Vallabhaneni Balashowry and Mr Manish Saxena, the then manager of Axis Bank, Najafgarh branch in Delhi, under the Prevention of Corruption Act.

According to sources in the CBI, a team conducted simultaneous searches in Hyderabad, Guntur and Noida a week ago at the residences and offices of the accused ex-IAF officer Sqn Ldr Polu Sreedhar (retd), a native of Krishna district and a resident of Bengaluru, and Mr Balashowry.

The CBI alleged that the ex-IAF official, in connivance with Manish Saxena and Mr Balashowry, procured land for Rs 12.5 crore in 2007-08 in the Najafgarh area. The ex-MP denied the charge.

IAF man deposited cash in various Axis branches
Mr Balashowry was the Congress MP from Tenali from 2004 to 2009 and later contested on a YSRC ticket in 2014 elections from the Guntur Parliamentary constituency. The CBI has questioned him in connection with the case.

In the FIR, it has been alleged that from January 1, 2007, to December 31, 2010, the former IAF official had amassed assets worth Rs 11.9 crore, which was 423 per cent more than his known sources of income in that period.

A CBI source said, “A week ago, searches were conducted in different places regarding the cases pertaining to Sreedhar and Balashowry.” The CBI alleged that Sqn. Ldr. Sreedhar (retd) had deposited the money in various branches of Axis Bank in three tranches.

He allegedly made huge transactions at Axis Bank, Najafgarh, amounting to Rs 8.4 crore through cash and wire transfers. It is alleged that in another account maintained at the same bank, transactions worth Rs 1.2 crore were made through cash deposits. In another transaction at a branch in Bengaluru, Rs 2.3 crore was deposited by him.

Mr Balashowry told DC, “I am only a witness. It is regarding land purchase. I purchased 20 acres at the rate of Rs 70 lakh from farmers in which Sreedhar was a mediator. Everything is legal and clear. CBI questioned me and I gave all details.”

He said that he had purchased land in 2007-08 and all the transactions were made according to norms. He said that as he was new to purchasing land, someone had introduced him to the ex-IAF officer as he knew the area.

“I do not know what transactions have been done by Sreedhar. I know him as someone who knew the area where I wanted to purchase land,” he claimed.