Kalaburgi: 5 held for forging Municipal Commissioner's Signature

The accused allegedly forged the Municipal Commissioner’s signature and misused official seals to withdraw funds fraudulently.

The case came to light following a complaint lodged by Superintendent Engineer and Acting Chief Accounts Officer of the Corporation, Shri Ramappa P. Jadhav, on December 31, 2024. According to the complaint, a group of individuals forged the signature of the Municipal Commissioner and used counterfeit seals to draw Rs 36,56,640 from the Corporation's account at the Indian Bank, Super Market Branch. This account, primarily used for 24/7 water supply projects, handles transactions through cheques signed by the Commissioner.

Following the complaint, the Brahmapur Police registered a case under various sections of the BNS and the Karnataka Municipal Act.

A special investigation team was constituted under the leadership of Assistant Commissioner of Police Bhutegowda VS, with guidance from DCPs.

City Police Commissioner Dr Sharanappa SD told reporters that acting swiftly, the team arrested five accused.

The arrested are identified as Mohammad Nayeemuddin Sargi (38), First Division Assistant and PA to the Municipal Commissioner, Wajid Imran (34), a resident of Bilalabad Colony, Mirza Arif Baig (31), residing in Ahmad Nagar Colony, Naseer Ahmed (38), an accountant on a contractual basis with the Corporation and Mohammad Abdul Rehman (28), a senior programmer engaged on a contractual basis.

Police also recovered Rs 30.75 lakh in cash from the accused. The arrested individuals were presented before the court and remanded to judicial custody.

Dr. Sharanappa praised the investigation team for their meticulous work in unearthing the conspiracy and apprehending the accused.