Sasikala prison bribery case: Bengaluru DIG D Roopa transferred to traffic department

D Roopa, the Deputy Inspector General of Prisons (Bengaluru), has been transferred to the Traffic and Road Safety Department after she exposed the corruption going on in the central prison in Bengaluru by claiming that former AIADMK chief VK Sasikala allegedly paid a bribe of Rs 2 crore to get exclusive privileges in the prison.

Also Read: Sasikala paid Rs 2 crore to get exclusive kitchen in jail, says DIG prisons

Sasikala is getting special treatment at the Bengaluru central prison, Parappana Agrahara, which includes an exclusive kitchen for all her meals, DIG (Prisons) Roopa, had said in a report last week. She had accused the jail officials, including her senior and Director General of Police (Prisons) HN Sathyanarayana Rao, of having received a bribe of Rs 2 crore to provide exclusive privileges and special treatment to Sasikala.

However, Rao and the other jail officials had denied all allegations. According to News9, Rao has also been transferred but he has not been assigned any posting or department yet. Parapanna Agrahara Central Prison Jail Superintendent Krishna Kumar has also been transferred. R.Anitha has been named as the replacement, ANI reported.

Roopa was quoted by the NDTV as saying that she found out about her transfer to the traffic department from the media.

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah had ordered a high-level inquiry into the allegations levelled by Roopa, who received a notice from the state government for having approached the media over the controversial report. The government also asked her to explain her conduct, with Siddaramaiah saying it was "absolutely against the rule book."

"Why should I not transfer her? It is an administrative process. It is not necessary to disclose everything to the media," Siddaramaiah told reporters on Monday.

The Bengaluru prison has been the centre of a controversy involving Sasikala, who is serving a prison term after being convicted in a disproportionate assets case. She is also reportedly allowed several visitors, which is a violation of rules.