5 men get jail term for misusing govt funds in Karnataka
Bengaluru (PTI): A special CBI court here has sentenced five men to seven years rigorous imprisonment each and fined them over Rs 5 crore in total for misappropriation of funds belonging to a Karnataka government body.
In the verdict pronounced on September 8, Judge Santosh Gajanan Bhat convicted five persons -- Kebballi Anand, H S Nagalingaswamy, Chandrashekar, H K Nagaraja and K B Harshan -- and fined them a total of Rs 5,02,75,000.
Of this, Rs 5.02 crore will be paid as compensation to Mandya Urban Development Authority (MUDA) which these five men cheated and the remaining will be forfeited to the state. If they default in paying the fine, the convicts will spend another two years in prison.
Based on the orders of the Government of Karnataka, the CBI and Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) had registered the case on March 18, 2014. The five men were released on bail on July 22, 2015.
They had been charged under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the Prevention of Corruption Act.
Kebballi Anand is in the iron ore business with a registered company named A R Logistics. Nagalingaswamy is the CEO of Future Farm & Estates, Chandrashekar is the proprietor of Akash Enterprises, a real estate firm; Nagaraja is a first division assistant in MUDA, and Harshan is an employee of Anand.
In the case, all five men fraudulently filled vouchers and cheques, and then misappropriated five cheques amounting to Rs 1 crore each issued by the then Commissioner of MUDA in favour of Indian Bank, Mandya branch to invest in the authority's name.
The five men had conspired to deposit the money in the account of Akash Enterprises instead and caused a loss of Rs 5 crore to MUDA, the court said.
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Kerala BJP leader PC George booked for 'hate speech'
Kottayam (Kerala), Jan 11: Kerala BJP leader P C George has been booked for allegedly making remarks that could incite religious hatred, police said on Saturday.
George was accused of hate speech against a minority community during a TV discussion held early this week, sources said.
The Erattupetta Police here registered a case against the senior leader on Friday based on a complaint filed by the Muslim Youth League Municipal Committee.
He was booked under various sections of the BNS, police said adding that further proceedings would be initiated soon.
"The case was registered after the statements of the complainants were recorded," a police officer said. Meanwhile, BJP strongly condemned the police case against George and alleged that it was a "political vendetta by the LDF government."
Senior BJP leader and the party's Kerala in-charge Prakash Javadekar accused the CPI(M)-led Left government of not saying a word against Hamas and admitting PDF followers into their fold.
Justifying George, Javadekar said he has already clarified that his intention was to express opposition to extremism and not to target any community.
"FIR against PC George is political vendetta by LDF government, which doesn't say a word against Hamas and admits PDF followers into their fold," he posted on his 'X' handle.
"UDF is also guilty of appeasing extremist politics. It never appreciated ban on PDF or condemned Hamas. PC George has already clarified that his intention was to express opposition to extremism & not to target any community. Kerala stands firmly against extremism," he added.
BJP state chief K Surendran also criticised the Pinarayi Vijayan government for registering the case against George and said the party would face the case legally and politically.
He also alleged that the government registered the case against the senior leader under the pressure of communal forces.
FIR against PC George is political vendetta by LDF government, which doesn’t say a word against Hamas and admits PDF followers into their fold.
— Prakash Javadekar (@PrakashJavdekar) January 11, 2025
UDF is also guilty of appeasement of extremist politics.
It never appreciated ban on PDF or condemned Hamas.
PC George has already…
