Srinagar, Dec 29: The Anti-Corruption Bureau registered 73 corruption cases across Jammu and Kashmir during the year 2025, targeting bribery, disproportionate assets, land scams, recruitment irregularities and financial frauds.
Official data accessed by the news agency Kashmir News Trust show that over 30 cases were registered in Kashmir province, with Srinagar accounting for the highest number. Prominent cases include disproportionate assets against senior officials of Srinagar Smart City Limited, irregularities in Hokarsar wetland dredging, financial scams in the Tourism Department Kashmir, EVK (Elahi Bagh, Vessu, Khrew) land scam and an illegal petrol pump construction case in Budgam.
Several trap cases were registered against officials from Power, Jal Shakti, Geology and Mining, Rural Development and Finance departments, involving bribes ranging from Rs 2,000 to Rs 50,000. A DDC member in Srinagar and his alleged agent were also arrested while accepting a bribe. In the last month of the year in Shopian, a patwari was caught red-handed taking Rs 25,000, with locals alleging his involvement in large-scale corruption.
In Jammu province, 43 cases were registered by ACB units in Jammu, Udhampur, Doda and Rajouri. Most cases involved illegal land transfers, with patwaris, tehsildars and naib tehsildars figuring prominently. Other cases include scholarship scams, illegal state land allotments and recruitment irregularities in the Fire and Emergency Services Department.
Overall analysis shows the highest number of cases against Revenue Department officials, followed by police and development-related departments. [KNT]
