Six benami liquor shop owners arrested

                                                                        

Six white ration card holders involved in benami ownership of liquor shops in Vizianagaram district were produced before the magistrate of Anti-Corruption Bureau court here on Sunday.

They were remanded in ACB custody by the judge. Joint Director of ACB A.R. Srinivasa Rao, who flew to Visakhapatnam to arrest the accused at Vizianagaram said on Sunday that they had not received any evidence on involvement of elected representatives in the benami ownership scam.

                                                     

Stating that it was beginning of cracking the whip on benami ownership of liquor shops at various places in the State as part of investigation into irregularities being committed by liquor syndicates, he told reporters.

They picked up seven persons and let off one pink card holder for not finding any evidence against him over benami ownership.

Subsequently, the officials brought the accused before Mahila Court judge who sent them to one-day judicial remand. It's likely that they would be produced before ACB court on Monday.
Meanwhile, a team led by joint director of ACB are trying to find out the persons behind the arrested men who might have financially supported them to bid for the liquor excise auction held in 2010, as the suspects are BPL holders. AR Srinivasa Rao, ACB joint director, denied having found any clue which can allude to the involvement of any politician. He said, he would soon start off the operation in Visakhpatanam and Srikakulam districts.ACB officials had conducted a series of search operation at a number of places in Vizianagaram district in March, 2012 following a news report that some of wine shops were allotted to ghost bidders who were working as a casual labourers in the same shops.