The Nitish Kumar government is moving swiftly on its word to teach corrupt officials in Bihar a lesson by taking the fight to their houses.
On Friday, it delivered the first blow by initiating steps for opening a primary school in the house of an official whose property is to be confiscated as per a court's orders.
Earlier, a special court judge ordered the confiscation of the property of Raghuvansh Kunwar, a former motor vehicle inspector of Aurangabad.
Within hours, the state's HRD department set in motion proceedings for having the school in Kunwar's house at Chaira village of Mohiuddinnagar in Samastipur district.
The action is in line with chief minister Nitish Kumar's promises of a crackdown on corruption during his poll speeches.
According to vigilance sources, apart from the house that the government intends to convert to a school, Kunwar's property includes a 2,720 square feet plot in Patna, a four-storey building in wife Lalita Devi's name, a commander jeep, Rs. 1.94 lakh cash and investments worth R8 lakh. Kunwar owns property worth Rs. 80 lakh, said a source.
The court has directed that the confiscation order be complied with within a month. Kunwar was caught while accepting a bribe of Rs. 50,000 in a trap laid by the vigilance department in 2008.