BJP MLA Madal Virupakshappa received a hero’s welcome in his hometown of Channagiri after securing interim anticipatory bail in the Lokayukta corruption case on Tuesday.
People burst firecrackers on the road and welcomed Madal with garlands as he thanked his supporters after his convoy briefly stopped due to the crowd gathered on the road.
Madal Virupakshappa is the main accused in the Karnataka Soaps and Detergents (KSDL) contract scam.
His son Prashanth Madal, who is the chief accounts officer of the Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board, was arrested by the Lokayutka police on March 2 while allegedly receiving a bribe of ₹40 lakh on behalf of his father at the KSDL office.
A single judge bench of Justice K Natarajan granted the anticipatory bail to the MLA after hearing his petition.
Virupakashappa quit after son's arrest
Virupakashappa resigned as chairperson of KSDL following his son's arrest.
While granting the conditional bail, the court directed the MLA to appear before the investigating officer in the case within 48 hours of receiving the order copy. The anticipatory bail was granted subject to a bond of Rs 5 lakh.
Virupakshappa was also directed not to tamper with the witness while on bail. The hearing of the petition was adjourned to March 17.
Virupakshappa's son caught taking ₹81 lakh bribe
The MLA's petition claimed that he had no role to play in the alleged bribery case and he has been falsely implicated in it. The alleged scam relates to the supply of chemical to KSDL in which a bribe of ₹81 lakh was allegedly demanded.
His son was allegedly caught while receiving Rs 40 lakh of this bribe on his behalf.
Following the arrest of Prashanth Madal, the Lokayukta police had conducted further search operations in the home and offices of the Madals and recovered over Rs 8.23 crore in cash.
(To receive our E-paper on WhatsApp daily, please click here. To receive it on Telegram, please click here. We permit sharing of the paper's PDF on WhatsApp and other social media platforms.)
