The Rajasthan government on Saturday placed IPS officer Prashakha Mathur, wife of senior IAS officer Shikhar Agarwal, on awaiting posting orders (APO) amid an Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) inquiry into alleged property purchases by the officer and his family at prices substantially below market rates.
On Friday, the state government approved a detailed ACB investigation into allegations that Agarwal, a 1993-batch Rajasthan-cadre IAS officer, misused his official position to extend undue benefits to Goyal Fashions Pvt Ltd, which operates hotels and resorts under the Ananta brand.
The allegations concern concessions extended to the company and properties allegedly acquired in Agarwal’s and his family members’ names at Ananta resorts in Udaipur and Alwar. The alleged benefits included relaxations in resort construction conditions, approvals without proper verification of mandatory certificates and a special concessional financial package. The timing of the transactions is also under scrutiny. The investigation will examine possible disproportionate assets, alleged misuse of authority and financial losses to the state. It will also scrutinise decisions taken during Agarwal’s tenures as Udaipur collector, Rajasthan State Pollution Control Board chairman and additional chief secretary in the industries and other departments.
The approval was granted under Section 17-A of the Prevention of Corruption Act, according to official information released by ACB. ACB director general Govind Gupta said the bureau examined a report published in the Jaipur edition of a Hindi daily on October 27, a factual report obtained from the industries department and information received through confidential sources before registering a preliminary inquiry. At the Ajabgarh resort in Alwar, eight villas were allegedly purchased in the couple’s names at ₹ 16.5 lakh each. Another four were purchased in their two sons’ names at around ₹ 15 lakh each, while four were acquired in the names of Agarwal’s in-laws at approximately ₹ 16.5 lakh each, the bureau said. The finance department issued a special concessional financial package to the company on March 27, 2026, the same day Agarwal allegedly registered the 20 Udaipur villas in his and his wife’s names, according to the ACB.
The preliminary inquiry indicated alleged criminal collusion between Agarwal and the company’s directors, according to the release.
