BEIJING, May 24 (Xinhua) -- Liu Xinqi, former commander of Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps (XPCC), has been expelled from the Communist Party of China (CPC) and demoted for "severe violations of Party code" including graft, authorities announced Wednesday.

Liu, also former deputy secretary of the CPC committee of the XPCC, allegedly took advantage of his post to obtain benefits for others and allowed relatives to use his influence to profit and take bribes, according to a statement from the CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI).

Based on CPC disciplinary regulations, Liu has received punishments, including expulsion from the CPC, removal from his administrative post, demotion to a non-leadership position at the divisional level, and confiscation of his ill-gotten assets.