PDO gets 4-year jail for bribery

Raichur: The third additional district and sessions court in Lingasugur on Friday sentenced Gorebal GP PDO Mohammed Khaja to four years imprisonment and imposed a fine of Rs 75,000 for accepting a bribe of Rs 15,000 to release subsidy funds for constructing a cattleshed.Judge B B Jakati has sentenced the accused under Section 7 of the Prevention of Corruption Act-1988, to three years imprisonment along with a fine of Rs 25,000. Additionally, under sections 13(1)(d) read with 13(2), the court imposed four years imprisonment and a fine of Rs 50,000.The case dates back to Nov 22, 2017, when Chethan Lokappa, a resident of Gorebal Tanda in Lingasugur taluk, approached PDO Mohammed Khaja seeking release of a subsidy of Rs 57,000 for constructing a cattleshed.The official allegedly demanded a bribe of Rs 15,000 to process the request, prompting Chethan to file a complaint at ACB police station.The accused was caught red-handed by ACB officials while accepting the bribe from Chethan. Following the arrest, police inspector Sridhar Doddi filed the chargesheet before the court.During the trial, Chethan turned hostile. Subsequently, the public prosecutor filed an application seeking action against him. Taking note of this, the court directed the shirastedar to register a criminal case against Chethan.Public prosecutor Basavaraj Hosalli had argued the case.