Bihar's Development Department chief under probe for alleged illicit property

In a high‑profile crackdown, the Economic Offences Unit (EOU) has placed Nard Kumar Das, the chief engineer of Bihar's Department of Planning and Development, under investigation for allegedly holding property far in excess of his legitimate earnings.

The investigation, formally recorded under charge sheet number 28/26, invokes the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 (sections 13(2) and 13(1)(b) as amended). The EOU acted on trustworthy intelligence that indicated Das had accrued wealth amounting to ₹83,53,200 beyond his known sources of income—a rise of nearly 65 percent.

Armed with a court‑issued search warrant, police teams launched simultaneous raids on Thursday at five sites: a residence on Hanuman Path in Bhagalpur, a dwelling in Tilkamanjhi, a home in the Bengali Tola of Belen Bazaar, Munger, a compound near Kasim Bazar, and a flat (2F) in Radhaika Apartments, Kajhi Mohammadpur, Muzaffarpur. Further inspections included a local engineering organization’s office, a state government office in Munger, and a house in the Kusumapur locality of Roopsur Police jurisdiction, Patna.

The search teams are meticulously cataloguing financial records, property papers, and any items of value discovered at each location. Once the multi‑site operation concludes, the EOU will release a detailed briefing outlining the evidence collected and the next steps in the legal process.