Suspended IAS Officer, Accused in Scam, Found Dead in Bengaluru

IAS officer BM Vijay Shankar was suspended after being accused of bribery in the Rs 40,000 crore IMA ponzi scam.

IAS officer BM Vijay Shankar, accused of bribery in the 40,000 crore rupees IMA Ponzi Scam was found dead at his Bengaluru residence on Wednesday, 24 June.

(Photo: File)

IAS officer BM Vijay Shankar, accused of bribery in the Rs 40,000 crore IMA ponzi scam was found dead at his Bengaluru residence on Wednesday, 24 June.

The police have confirmed that he died by suicide.

Shankar was suspended from the services last year when he was arrested by a team looking into the IMA or I-Monetary Advisory scam, reported NDTV. As part of the scam, thousands of investors were cheated with promises of higher returns.

Shankar was later released on bail.

"Vijay Shankar committed suicide by hanging himself. He was accused of taking bribe of Rs 1.5 crore in IMA scam. It was an unnatural death and we are investigating the case," said Bengaluru Police Commissioner Bhaskar Rao to NDTV.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had, last month, sought permission from the Karnataka government to prosecute him and two others.

Shankar was accused of taking bribes to cover up the IMA fraud when he was asked by the government to investigate the case.

A CBI probe revealed that the IMA group raised unauthorised and illegal deposits to the tune of Rs 40,000 crore in a fraudulent manner. This later came to the attention of the Income Tax department and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

The RBI had then written to the Karnataka government to investigate IMA. Shankar was then tasked with the same by the government.

He was formerly the Deputy Commissioner of Bengaluru Urban.

(With inputs from NDTV)