Former BJP Minister Maluru Krishnaiah Shetty convicted in Rs 7.17 cr bank fraud case
Bengaluru, Feb 06 (PTI): A special court here on Thursday convicted former Karnataka Minister and BJP leader Maluru Krishnaiah Shetty in a fraud case involving Rs 7.17 crore.
Judge Santosh Gajanana Bhat ruled that Shetty and three others had defrauded a private bank using forged documents. However, the quantum of punishment is yet to be announced.
The case, investigated by CBI, was based on a complaint lodged by the defrauded bank.
The court has found Shetty, along with co-accused Srinivas and Muniraju, guilty of multiple offenses, including criminal conspiracy and forgery.
The fraud dates back to 1993 when Shetty, through his firm Balaji Krupa Enterprises, promised housing board loans to employees of public sector enterprises. By creating fake documents in their names, he secured bank loans, of which Rs 3.53 crore remains unpaid.
The CBI investigation confirmed his involvement in the scam, leading to charges under Sections 120B (criminal conspiracy), 409 (criminal breach of trust), 419 (cheating by personation), 420 (cheating), 467 (forgery), and 471 (use of forged documents as genuine) of the IPC.
Shetty, a former MLA from Maluru, was once a close associate of ex-Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa. As Muzrai Minister in the BJP government, he had gained attention for distributing Ganga water. He had previously spent 24 days in jail alongside Yediyurappa.
After leaving BJP to join the Congress, Shetty returned to BJP in 2017. In the 2023 Karnataka Assembly election, he sought a BJP ticket for the Gandhinagar constituency in Bengaluru, but was denied a nomination in favour of Saptagiri Gowda.
Claiming an internal agreement between the Congress and BJP led to his exclusion. Shetty contested as an independent but secured only 6,781 votes, losing the election.
With the court now holding him guilty in the bank fraud case, Shetty faces fresh legal troubles, awaiting sentencing in the coming days.
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Cong takes swipe at PM over India not being part of US-led 'Pax Silica' grouping
New Delh (PTI) The Congress on Saturday said it is perhaps not very surprising that India is not part of a US-led strategic initiative to build a secure silicon supply chain, given the "sharp downturn" in the Trump-Modi ties, and asserted that it would have been to "our advantage if we had been part of this group".
Congress general secretary in charge of communications Jairam Ramesh took a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying the news of India not being part of the group comes after the PM had enthusiastically posted on social media about a telephone call with his "once-upon-a-time good friend and a recipient of many hugs in Ahmedabad, Houston, and Washington DC".
In a lengthy post on X, Ramesh said, "According to some news reports, the US has excluded India from a nine-nation initiative it has launched to reduce Chinese control on high-tech supply chains. The agreement is called Pax Silica, clearly as a counter to Pax Sinica. The nations included (for the moment at least) are the US, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Singapore, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and Australia."
"Given the sharp downturn in the Trump-Modi ties since May 10th, 2025, it is perhaps not very surprising that India has not been included. Undoubtedly, it would have been to our advantage if we had been part of this group."
"This news comes a day after the PM had enthusiastically posted on his telephone call with his once-upon-a-time good friend and a recipient of many hugs in Ahmedabad, Houston, and Washington DC," the Congress leader asserted.
The new US-led strategic initiative, rooted in deep cooperation with trusted allies, has been launched to build a secure and innovation-driven silicon supply chain.
According to the US State Department, the initiative called 'Pax Silica' aims to reduce coercive dependencies, protect the materials and capabilities foundational to artificial intelligence (AI), and ensure aligned nations can develop and deploy transformative technologies at scale.
The initiative includes Japan, South Korea, Singapore, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and Australia. With the exception of India, all other QUAD countries -- Japan, Australia and the US -- are part of the new initiative.
New Delhi will host the India-AI Impact Summit 2026 on February 19-20, focusing on the principles of 'People, Planet, and Progress'. The summit, announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the France AI Action Summit, will be the first-ever global AI summit hosted in the Global South.
Prime Minister Modi and US President Trump on Thursday discussed ways to sustain momentum in the bilateral economic partnership in a phone conversation amid signs of the two sides inching closer to firming up a much-awaited trade deal.
The phone call between the two leaders came on a day Indian and American negotiators concluded two-day talks on the proposed bilateral trade agreement that is expected to provide relief to India from the Trump administration's whopping 50 per cent tariffs on Indian goods.
In a social media post, Modi had described the conversation as "warm and engaging".
"We reviewed the progress in our bilateral relations and discussed regional and international developments. India and the US will continue to work together for global peace, stability and prosperity," Modi had said without making any reference to trade ties.
