Bihar’s special vigilance unit (SVU) conducted searches at premises linked to the district education officer (DEO) of West Champaran on Thursday, and seized over ₹2 crore cash and other assets.

The education department suspended Rajnikant Praveen on charges of corruption after getting information about the raid and the seizure.

The SVU took the action after registering a case under various sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act 1988 against Praveen on the basis of inputs that he had accumulated massive property by misusing his official position.

Praveen was saying his prayers in the morning, when the SVU team arrived at his house.

According to the sleuths of the state agency, at least five residential and official premises connected to Praveen in Bettiah (West Champaran), Bahadurpur (Samastipur), Darbhanga and Madhubani were searched during the operation.

“Our officers have seized more than ₹2 crore cash from two residential premises of the DEO. Apart from them, a colossal amount of ill-gotten wealth has been detected. The search is under way and a clear picture will emerge only after it is over,” SVU additional director general (ADG) Pankaj Darad told The Telegraph.

Darad added that Praveen had joined service in 2005.

The SVU had to take help from a bank to count the seized currency notes, that were in ₹100 and ₹500 denominations.

The sleuths have also recovered a large number of property-related documents. The land plots are spread across various locations in Bihar, including Patna.

Praveen’s wife Sushma Kumari is a teacher in a government-run higher secondary school Tirhut Academy, but is said to be on education leave from service and runs Open Minds Birla School at Darbhanga. She is the director of the school.

The land on which the school has been constructed belongs to Sushma, but Praveen has opened the school. He also owns 10 mini-buses that ply for the students of the posh school.

Several pass books, papers pertaining to bank lockers and a heavy amount of jewellery have also been seized.

The SVU officials said that there was a strong possibility of further movable and immovable assets of Praveen being recovered from other states.