Arrested MLAs Nagendra and Munirathna released after being granted bail

File picture of Congress MLA B. Nagendra
| Photo Credit: Sudhakara Jain

Three months after being arrested by the Enforcement Directorate, Congress MLA B. Nagendra on Wednesday (October 16, 2024) was released from the Parappana Agrahara Central Jail in Bengaluru after he was granted bail in connection with the alleged multi-crore scam in the Karnataka Maharshi Valmiki Scheduled Tribes Development Corporation Ltd (KMVSTDCL).

Nagendra, arrested by the ED in July, was granted bail by the special court for cases involving elected representatives in Bengaluru on Monday.

Speaking to reporters following his release, Nagendra alleged that he was harassed by the ED for three months.

“Even though I have no role in this scam, I was arrested and with pressure from the BJP’s central leaders, the ED, through me, tried to destabilise the government in Karnataka,” he said soon after hisrelease.

‘Mastermind,’ said ED

The ED on September 9 filed the chargesheet, or the prosecution complaint in money-laundering cases, terming Nagendra the “mastermind” in the scam. The ED had claimed that ₹20.19 crore of the funds misappropriated from KMVSTDCL was diverted to Ballari during the 2024 Lok Sabha elections in May.

The ED investigation claimed that under the influence of Nagendra, the account of the corporation was moved to the MG Road Branch without any proper authorisation, where ₹187 crore, including ₹43.33 crore from the State Treasury under the Ganga Kalyana Scheme was deposited without following proper procedures and in violation of government guidelines.

Meanwhile, rape accused and R.R. Nagar BJP MLA Munirathna was also released from the Parappana Agrahara Central Prison in Bengaluru, a day after he was granted bail in a rape case.

The Special Court for MP/MLAs, while granting bail, directed Munirathna to appear before the investigators whenever needed and not to leave the court’s jurisdiction without prior permission. Munirathna was also directed to refrain from threatening witnesses.

The SIT is probing three cases registered — two in Vyalikaval police station in Bengaluru and one in Kaggalipura police station in Ramanagara — against the MLA from RR Nagar in Bengaluru.

The MLA has been booked under multiple sections, including rape, sexual harassment, voyeurism, criminal intimidation, extortion, promoting enmity between different groups, word, gesture or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and sections of the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.