Karnataka Cong MLA gets 7-yr jail for theft, illegal export of iron ore

A special court in Bengaluru has sentenced Congress MLA Sateesh Krishna Sail to seven years imprisonment and imposed hefty fines for theft and illegal export of seized iron ore from Belekeri port during 2009-10.

The Special Court for the People's Representatives convicted the 58-year-old MLA from Karwar, along with six other accused on October 24.

With the conviction, fear of losing assembly membership looms over the two-time MLA.

As the managing director of Shri Mallikarjuna Shipping Private Ltd, Sail was convicted on charges of theft, criminal conspiracy and cheating.

A large amount of iron ore worth crores of rupees, which was illegally mined in Ballari, was stored at the Belekeri port way back in 2010.

However, the accused colluded with the officials and smuggled it to China.

The other convicts in the case are the then Deputy Conservator of Ports, Mahesh J Biliye, Ashapura Minechem MD Chetan Shah, K V Nagaraj alias Swastik Nagaraj, K V N Govindaraj, Venkateshwara Minerals partner Karapudi Mahesh Kumar and Lal Mahal Limited MD Prem Chand Garg.

Biliye, found guilty for the criminal breach of trust and criminal conspiracy, was also sentenced to seven years imprisonment, with the court imposing a fine of Rs six crore in the primary case.

In a related theft case, the convicts were sentenced to an additional three years, and the court ordered the confiscation of fine amounts by the government.

In a second case, the court handed a further seven-year sentence and slapped a fine of six crore rupees on Sail.

For the third case, all the accused were sentenced to five years in prison and fines of Rs 20,000 were imposed, along with a total fine of Rs 9.36 crore for committing fraud.

In the fourth case, Sail, Biliye and Nagaraj were sentenced to five years and seven years for fraud, with an additional fine of Rs 9.54 crore.

Soon after the conviction, the Central Bureau of Investigation, which probed the case arrested him and two others.

Reacting to the development, Union Minister Pralhad Joshi said, "I appeal to the Karnataka Assembly Speaker to disqualify the MLA after he was convicted."