The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : Minorities development corporation chief held

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Mar 23, 2005

Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

Minorities development corporation chief held

By Our Staff Reporter

The Chairman of the Karnataka State Minorities Development Corporation, Mohammed Obeidullah Sharief (right), who was arrested in Bangalore on Tuesday, speaking to the Lokayukta, N. Venkatachala. — Photo: V. Sreenivasa Murthy

BANGALORE, MARCH 22. The Lokayukta police on Tuesday trapped and arrested the Chairman of the Karnataka State Minorities Development Corporation (KSMDC) and Congress leader, Mohammed Obeidullah Sharief, when he was allegedly accepting a bribe of Rs. 75,000.

Mr. Sharief was arrested at his house in Cox Town at 6.15 p.m. when he was allegedly accepting money from Naseerullah, secretary, Karnataka Integrated Social Welfare Society (KISWS), for sanctioning autorickshaw loans, the Lokayukta, N. Venkatachala, told presspersons. Mr. Sharief was released on bail.

The KSMDC pays margin money of Rs. 25,000 for purchasing an autorickshaw and a subsidy of Rs. 5,000. The rest of the money is paid by banks.

Loan applications

One hundred people had sent applications to the KSMDC, through the KISWS, for purchasing autorickshaws. Mr. Sharief had allegedly sought Rs. 6 lakhs (Rs. 6,000 an applicant) for sanction of loans and asked Mr. Naseerullah to pay an advance of Rs. 1 lakh.

When Mr. Naseerullah said he could not arrange Rs. 1 lakh and had only Rs. 75,000, Mr. Sharief reportedly asked him to meet him at his residence on Tuesday evening. The conversation between Mr. Sharief and Mr. Naseerullah was recorded and a trap was laid, the police said. After arresting Mr. Sharief, the police brought him to the Lokayukta office and produced him before Mr. Venkatachala.

`I was framed'

Mr. Sharief said he was innocent and told the Lokayukta that when he refused to accept the money, Mr. Naseerullah kept it on a bookstand, and the police rushed into his house and arrested him.

Mr. Sharief claimed that someone had got him trapped to "damage him politically." "There exists an autorickshaw mafia, which obtains loans on the strength of fake certificates. I have lodged a complaint against some people involved in such activities with the Lokayukta as well as the Cubbon Park, Bharathinagar and Kadugondanahalli police," Mr. Sharief said. He said he was prepared to face any inquiry, including one by the Corps of Detectives (CoD). To Mr. Naseerullah's charge that he threatened to kill him, Mr. Sharief said he too has been receiving threatening calls.

Mr. Sharief, who is the editor of the Urdu newspaper Daily Pasban, unsuccessfully contested the 1996 Lok Sabha election as the Congress candidate from the Bangalore North constituency.

He lost to C. Narayanaswamy of the Janata Dal by a margin of 1.33 lakh votes. He is a former President of the Minority Cell of the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Karnataka

News Update

Stories in this Section

Minorities development corporation chief held

Long queues at Test match ticket counters

Security guard accused of stealing laptops

A friend with HIV is still a friend: Tendulkar

Travel agents protest cut in commission

`Buy bus passes from counters'

Another flight to Bangkok

BMP budget on Monday

Around the City

In Bangalore Today