Rouse Avenue Court convicts Congress MLA in Gramin Vikas Bank fraud case

Bharti, a Congress MLA from Datia in Madhya Pradesh, has been taken into custody. Another accused, Raghubir Sharan Prajapati, was also convicted by the court.

The case had been transferred to Delhi by the Supreme Court following a plea filed by Bharti.

Special Judge (MP-MLA) convicted Bharti and Prajapati for cheating, forgery, use of forged documents, and criminal conspiracy.

The court found Bharti guilty of criminal conspiracy under Section 120B of the Indian Penal Code, read with Sections 420, 467, 468, and 471 of the IPC. Prajapati was convicted of forgery and criminal conspiracy.

Arguments on sentencing are scheduled for Thursday. The third accused, Savitri Shyam, Bharti's mother, passed away during the trial.

A criminal complaint under Section 200 of the CrPC was filed on July 29, 2015, against Savitri Shyam and her son, Rajendra Bharti, by Zila Sahkari Krishi Aur Grahmin Vikas Bank. Raghubir Sharan Prajapati was summoned later on a subsequent application.

According to the complaint, on August 24, 1998, Savitri deposited Rs. 10 lakh in a fixed deposit (FD) for a three-year term at an interest rate of 13.5% per annum in the name of a trust, Shri Shyam Sunder Shyam Jan Sahyog Evam Samajik Vikas Sansthan, Mundian Ka Kuan, Datia, M.P.

It was alleged that instead of claiming the interest upon maturity, she began withdrawing annual interest payments of Rs. 1.35 lakh starting in 1999 and continued to do so for 13 years, until 2011, in violation of the FD terms.

The bank further alleged that Bharti, using his position as chairman of the board of directors of the bank, pressured employees into facilitating these unauthorised payments to his mother/the trust, resulting in wrongful financial loss to the bank.

Additionally, the complainant asserted that the accused, acting in conspiracy, tampered with official bank records to extend the interest payments beyond the initial three-year period. They allegedly forged the FD duration on the bank ledger, FD receipts, and the FD certificate counterfoil, changing the term from "three" years to "ten" or "fifteen" years on various documents.

The bank claimed that both Savitri and Bharti conspired to embezzle funds for personal gain, continuing to withdraw interest at the high rate of 13.5% long after the original FD term had expired. (ANI)