Gadag: Lokayukta Trap Nets Shirahatti MLA Chandru Lamani And Two Aides
A case has been registered under Section 7(a) read with Section 7(A) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988.
Gadag: The Karnataka Lokayukta Police on Saturday trapped BJP MLA Dr Chandru Lamani and two of his aides while allegedly accepting a bribe of Rs 5 lakh in connection with a minor irrigation works contract in Gadag district.
The case was registered based on a complaint filed by Vijay Pujar, a Class-I contractor. He alleged that a bribe of Rs 11 lakh was demanded for clearing works related to the construction of retaining walls on both sides of a road under the Minor Irrigation Department.
At around 2.15 pm on Saturday, the Lokayukta police caught Dr Chandru Lamani and his close aides Manjunath Valmiki and Gurunaik red-handed while they were receiving Rs 5 lakh at Lamani’s office in Balaji Hospital in Lakshmeshwar town.
The hospital is owned by Dr Lamani.
Lokayukta sources told Deccan Chronicle that those trapped in the operation include Shirahatti MLA Dr Chandru Lamani, and his personal assistants Manjunath Valmiki and Gurunaik (Private PA) and Rs 5 lakh was recovered at the time of the trap.
The operation was carried out by the Gadag unit of the Karnataka Lokayukta Police under the supervision of senior officers. All three accused have been secured and further investigation is in progress.
A case has been registered under Section 7(a) read with Section 7(A) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988.
Soon after news of the raid at Balaji Hospital in Lakshmeshwar spread on Saturday afternoon, hundreds of BJP workers gathered there and raised slogans against local Congress leaders.
They alleged that the Lokayukta action against Dr Chandru Lamani was the result of a Congress conspiracy.
Dr Chandru Lamani rose from being a government doctor to a first-time MLA by winning in the 2023 election. According to sources, earlier while serving as a doctor, he had faced a Lokayukta complaint.
