Ex-Karnataka clerk with ₹15k salary, owns 24 houses, assets worth ₹30 crore

The Karnataka Lokayukta officials on Friday raided the residence of Kalakappa Nidagundi, a former clerk of the Karnataka Rural Infrastructure Development Limited (KRIDL), and uncovered unaccounted assets worth over ₹30 crore. Nidagundi, who was posted in Koppal and drew a monthly salary of ₹15,000, is accused of accumulating disproportionate assets far beyond his known income sources.

During the raid, officials found that Nidagundi owned 24 houses, four plots, and 40 acres of farmland. The assets were registered in his name, his wife's name, and his brother-in-law’s name. In addition, officials seized two cars, two two-wheelers, 350 grams of gold, and over 1.5 kilograms of silver from the premises.

Nidagundi is accused of embezzling more than ₹72 crore in collaboration with a former KRIDL engineer, ZM Chincholkar. The two allegedly created fake bills for 96 incomplete infrastructure projects to siphon off the funds. Investigating officials are verifying the documents and financial records connected to the case.

The raid was carried out by a Lokayukta team led by CPI Parashuram Kavatagi and supervised by DySP Pushpalatha and Officer PS Patil. The operation is part of a larger statewide crackdown targeting government officials suspected of possessing assets disproportionate to their declared income.

In recent weeks, similar searches were conducted at the premises of officials across various departments, including National Highways, Horticulture, BBMP, Health, and Drinking Water and Sanitation. A separate operation on July 23 targeted 41 locations across six districts and recovered assets worth ₹37.42 crore, including those from IAS officer Vasanthi Amar BV, currently posted at K-RIDE.