
CBI probes bribery scam: Telangana medical college trustee & NMC officials accused of paying for approvals
Others named include Venkat, director of Gayatri Medical College, Visakhapatnam, NMC inspection team member P Rajini Reddy, and three others.
The FIR alleges that Fr Kommareddy paid substantial bribes through intermediaries to secure favourable inspection reports and regulatory approvals. Six individuals have already been arrested. The CBI is expected to summon Fr Kommareddy, trustees of the Warangal institute, the diocesan administrator, and the former chairman of the trust for questioning.
NMC officials and Gayatri College directors will also face scrutiny.
You Can Also Check:
Hyderabad AQI
|
Weather in Hyderabad
|
Bank Holidays in Hyderabad
|
Public Holidays in Hyderabad
6 from Andhra Pradesh, Telangana among accused
Out of 36 accused in this nationwide scam, six are from Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, including Dr B Hari Prasad (Anantapur), Dr Ankam Rambabu (Hyderabad), and Dr Krishna Kishore (Visakhapatnam).
The probe reveals that Dr Virendra Kumar, another key accused, operated a regional network via Dr Prasad, who, along with Dr Rambabu and Dr Kishore, facilitated inspections and regulatory dealings for several colleges.
They allegedly arranged dummy faculty during statutory inspections and secured letters of renewal from the NMC in return for bribes.
In one instance, Dr Kishore allegedly collected Rs 50 lakh from Venkat of Gayatri Medical College to resolve a pending NMC issue. Part of the amount was reportedly transferred to Delhi through hawala channels. Fr Kommareddy, meanwhile, reportedly transferred Rs 20 lakh and Rs 46 lakh on two occasions through formal banking routes.
The CBI has also named Poonam Meena, director in the ministry of health and family welfare, for allegedly instructing her staff officer, Piyush Malyan, to gather advance information on NMC inspection dates and inquire about related 'expenses.'
The case involves charges under Prevention of Corruption Act, including criminal conspiracy and bribery. It is linked to an earlier case in Chhattisgarh, where three doctors and three middlemen were arrested for taking bribes for favourable inspection reports.

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


News18
34 minutes ago
- News18
This Kerala Man Rented Flats, ‘Sold Them On OLX'. Scam Amount Now Stands At Rs 20 Lakh
Last Updated: The arrested accused, Mintu Mani, was living in a rented flat in Vazhakkala. A brazen property scam has been unearthed in Kakkanad, Kerala. Police have arrested a man for allegedly renting out flats and then 'selling" them to unsuspecting buyers through the online marketplace OLX. The arrested accused, Mintu Mani, who is the second accused in the property scam case, was living in a rented flat in Vazhakkala. The prime suspect, Asha, remains at large, leaving authorities scrambling to apprehend the mastermind behind the scam. The accused orchestrated a scam where they would rent flats in Kakkanad and surrounding areas, then advertise these properties on OLX as available for mortgage deals. Unwitting victims were enticed with promises of property mortgages and tricked into paying substantial advance amounts. The scammers exploited the same flats repeatedly, collecting lakhs from multiple buyers who were unaware of each other's involvement. The case came to light when a complaint was filed regarding a flat at Global Village Apartments on Manikulangara Road, Kakkanad. The complainants alleged that they had paid money to mortgage the flat for 11 months. One victim paid Rs 6.5 lakh and attempted to occupy the flat, only to discover that it had already been 'mortgaged" to two other individuals for a total of Rs 8 lakh. As the scam unravelled, more victims surfaced, and nearly 20 people have now approached the police, claiming they were similarly defrauded. The estimated scam amount totals around Rs 20 lakh. Thrikkakara police have registered three separate cases, while Infopark police are investigating two additional complaints related to the scam. In a similar case, a man in Madhya Pradesh allegedly lured poor individuals with false promises of making them 'journalists" by giving them ID cards and defrauded them of over Rs 13 lakh. The fraud was carried out under the pretext of securing flats through the journalist quota. The scam came to light when the promised flats were never delivered, even after payments were made. The accused, Yunus Khan, claimed he would provide flats within six months and even promised a housing-related NOC from Vindhyachal, Bhopal. He reportedly duped several people in the same manner, collecting over Rs 13 lakh in total. First Published:


Indian Express
39 minutes ago
- Indian Express
MiG-29K T-shirts, faith in Army, and a call from Bhole Baba: An unprecedented Amarnath Yatra picks up
The whirring of the helicopter blades breaks the silence in the lush green mountains of Pahalgam. Every few minutes, an armoured vehicle rumbles past, with the personnel inside scanning the crowd. It is palpable that this year's Amarnath Yatra is taking place under the shadow of the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, wherein 26 civilians were killed on the picturesque meadows in southern Kashmir. It used to be a celebration where devotees would jibe to EDM remixes of the latest devotional songs. This time, at the Nunwan base camp, the first campsite for the yatris, there is silence – no melodies that sadhus play, no shouts of Bum Bum Bhole. Instead, what's audible is the sound of metal detectors and a loudspeaker that regularly warns pilgrims not to go near the Lidder River, where chances of drowning are high. The yatris navigate through several security measures, including RFID tags that enable facial recognition, a physical pat-down, and bag examination through X-ray machines. The camp is equipped with 550 tents, 17 shops, 300 toilets, and 70 baths, all arranged in a grid, and can accommodate up to 5,500 pilgrims. However, the tents have barely filled up at noon on Friday. Mohammad Shami's three tents remain empty: 'Yesterday, I managed to fill them. I charge Rs 600 for a tent equipped with a bed, an electricity connection, and a blanket.' Durgesh Kumar, a resident of Uttar Pradesh's Ayodhya, stands alone, his right sleeve pinned to his shirt where his arm should be. Ten years ago, a flour mill accident claimed his limb, but not his determination. 'My group of 30 people have left,' he said. Kumar headed here from Jammu when he was unable to get an RFID tag there. 'There is massive enthusiasm in Jammu. I was not getting a token. But Bhole blessed me with one today. I hope to catch up with my group soon. My wife and two children cried when I decided to come to Pahalgam. But I am undeterred,' he said. Then there's Gautam Mahato, who journeyed from Kharagpur. His white T-shirt, printed in Thailand by his employer, bears his photograph alongside his boss's son, a gift for his work as a contractor. 'My ticket was cancelled six times in the past,' Mahato said, beaming. 'I try every year, but Baba doesn't call me. This year, I got the chance to come.' 'My wife cried a lot. She said, 'Why do you go there when Bhole Baba has stopped you six times?' I told her this time, God has called me, so I will go,' he said. For some pilgrims, the terror attack has become a catalyst for participation rather than deterrence. Anil Kumar from the Ram Mandir Sansthan group in Ayodhya leads 11 first-time pilgrims. 'Humare andar aur ichcha jaagi,' he said. 'We wanted to come to Amarnath because of the terror attack,' said Arjun Jaiswal, another member of the group. The sentiment is echoed by a group of 43 people from Gorakhpur, many wearing MiG 29K T-shirts in support of Operation Sindoor. They have been making this pilgrimage for several years. Sarvajit Gupta (23), from the Gorakhpur group, articulated what many feel: 'I told my family that if the Indian Army is there, then there is nothing to fear. When our family asked us not to go, it lit a fire in our hearts. We decided to rope in as many people as possible. We have come here to show that we won't bow to fear.' At ground zero in Pahalgam, personnel from the Central Industrial Security Force, Central Reserve Police Force, and Indo-Tibetan Border Police now work alongside local police in intensive frisking operations that can stretch for hours. A BSF constable in dark aviators and a tactical face mask politely declines a family's request for a selfie. 'Maaf karna, authority nahi hai,' he said. This is his third posting for the Amarnath Yatra, and he has watched the security apparatus evolve into something unprecedented. 'There is no scope for any mistake,' the constable said, his eyes scanning the crowd even as he spoke. At the Pahalgam main market, the berry shops, Kashmir handloom stores and tea shops barely have any customers. Three women from Bhopal wait for their husbands to join them here. Lata Kushwaha left her 3-year-old daughter and 8-year-old son with their grandparents back home. Her relative Lakshmi Kushwaha has the same worry; her 13-year-old son and 10-year-old daughter are hundreds of miles away. 'We always go somewhere,' said Priya Kushwaha, the third woman. 'This time, we thought we would go to Amarnath. We went to Kedarnath last year, and we got everything in a single day.' They left in a group of 18, but not all have got their RFID tags. Three days were spent running from pillar to post in Jammu, chasing the elusive registration passes that would grant them access to the holy cave. 'We don't care about the terror attack,' Priya said. 'We just want to do darshan no matter what.' Jahid Azad, the assistant director of the Tourism department at Pahalgam, told The Indian Express, 'We expected the crowd to be pretty low due to the unfortunate terror attack. This time, we were caught by surprise as many yatris came for darshan from the Pahalgam route. But overall, the tourism footfall in Pahalgam has taken a hit. We are preparing a report to enumerate the economic impact of this.' Azad said they were expecting 1,000 yatris per day, but the numbers have gone up to 3,000-4,000. 'From the Pahalgam route, 12,000 pilgrims have left since the yatra began. We have to see how long this keeps up,' he said.


NDTV
an hour ago
- NDTV
Foreign Liquor Worth Rs 1.19 Crore Seized In Gujarat: Cops
Ahmedabad: Gujarat State Monitoring Cell (SMC) from Gandhinagar seized foreign liquor worth Rs 1.19 crore during a raid in Chotila taluka of Surendranagar. Acting on a tip-off, the SMC team raided a farmhouse near Kherdi village, close to Nagaraj Hotel, and uncovered nearly 1,000 boxes containing 8,596 bottles of foreign-made liquor. In total, police seized goods worth Rs 1.26 lakh, including the liquor consignment and a pickup vehicle suspected to be used for transport. A case has been filed against 10 individuals, including Dilip Bavku Dhandhal of Nani Moldi village. Authorities say some of the accused are still on run and further investigation is underway. In dry-state Gujarat, liquor seizures in 2025 have continued at an alarming scale, revealing the deep-rooted network of smuggling operations despite decades of prohibition. In just the first half of the year, authorities have conducted multiple high-value raids across districts. In Banaskantha, foreign liquor hidden in plastic-wrapped packages valued at Rs 17 lakh was confiscated. Smaller but frequent raids have also been carried out, including one that netted two men transporting liquor and beer worth Rs 7.35 lakh, and another operation yielding over Rs 62,000 in seized alcohol. Although full-year data for 2025 is still unfolding, trends mirror those of 2024, when Gujarat police seized over 82 lakh bottles of IMFL worth Rs 144 crore, averaging nearly one bottle every 4 seconds. The State Monitoring Cell (SMC) alone had registered 455 cases, confiscating liquor worth Rs 22.5 crore, with total seized property crossing Rs 52 crore. Gujarat follows one of the strictest liquor prohibition policies in India, rooted in the legacy of Mahatma Gandhi and enforced under the Gujarat Prohibition Act, 1949. The law bans the manufacture, sale, purchase, consumption, and possession of alcohol across the state. However, exceptions exist. Individuals can apply for a health permit to consume alcohol for medical reasons, usually limited to people above 40 or with specific conditions, and tourists visiting Gujarat can apply for a temporary liquor permit, valid for up to a month and only usable at licensed liquor shops in certain cities. Penalties for violations can be severe — including hefty fines, imprisonment, and seizure of vehicles or properties involved in smuggling.