(Adds suspended death sentence for former China Mobile executive)
BEIJING, July 22 (Reuters) - China is investigating the third senior railways ministry official this year over allegations of corruption as the government tries to crack down on graft, one of the main triggers of public discontent, according to media reports.
Su Shunhu, deputy director of the transportation bureau under the Ministry of Railways, had been placed under "shuang gui", meaning he is required to confess to authorities within a prescribed time and place, the financial newspaper Economic Observer said on its website (www.eeo.com.cn).
The report said investigators were looking into allegations Su received a house in Beijing as a gift in exchange for helping a coal mine in the northern province of Inner Mongolia transport coal by rail in the face of a rail cargo glut.
Several other newspapers, including the 21st Century Business Herald, also reported the case on Friday, citing their own sources.
The transportation bureau is responsible for making railway construction plans and dispatching traffic across the country, according to the ministry&${esc.hash}39;s website (www.china-mor.gov.cn).
Asked about the media reports, ministry spokesman Shen Danyang told Reuters: "We are not very clear about the investigation."
The government has spent billions on boosting the railway network of the world&${esc.hash}39;s most populous country and has said it plans to spend ${esc.dollar}120 billion a year, over several years, on railway construction.
Su&${esc.hash}39;s last public appearance was at the opening ceremony for the high-profile Beijing-Shanghai high-speed railway in June and his investigation for graft comes a few months after other senior officials were also probed for corruption.
In February, Liu Zhijun was sacked as railways minister for "serious disciplinary violations". He had spearheaded the investment drive into the rail sector over the last decade.
In March, Zhang Shuguang, the ministry&${esc.hash}39;s deputy chief engineer who was believed to be close to Liu, was investigated for "severe disciplinary violations".
In a separate case, a court in northern China gave Zhang Chunjiang, a former vice-chairman of Hong Kong-listed China Mobile , a suspended death sentence for taking bribes, the official Xinhua news agency said.
The court found that Zhang, took 7.46 million yuan (${esc.dollar}1.16 million) in bribes, the report added.
"Zhang was given a suspended death sentence, meaning the sentence could be commuted to life after two years of good behaviour, because he confessed his crimes and all the bribe money had been recovered," Xinhua said.
China&${esc.hash}39;s ruling Communist Party has repeatedly vowed to stamp out corruption within the government as the rapidly growing economy gives senior officials opportunities to abuse their power for private gain.
Critics say the fight against graft is hampered by the lack of an independent judiciary and by officials not being held accountable to an electorate or by an independent media. (${esc.dollar}1 = 6.452 Yuan) (Reporting by Sally Huang, Sui-Lee Wee and Ben Blanchard; Editing by Alex Richardson)
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