The Karnataka government has granted the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) permission to indict two IPS officers in connection with the I, Monetary Advisory (IMA) scam. The CBI had accused two IPS officers — Hemanth Nimbalkar, the former IGP of Economic Offences, and former Deputy Commissioner of Police (East) Ajay Hilory — of colluding with IMA owner Mansoor Ali Khan.
In a letter dated January 7, Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa granted permission to the CBI. “On due examination of facts and circumstances of the case and the proposal of the investigating agency, with regard to said allegations, prima facie, a case has been made out against the two officers and they should be investigated for said offences,” the letter states.
In December 2019, the CBI had written to the Chief Minister, asking him to sanction their request to prosecute Hemanth Nimbalkar and Ajay Hilory. The CBI had filed a preliminary chargesheet in August 2019 but had not named the two officers in it as the state government had not granted permission for the same.
In a letter submitted to the state government, the CBI had said, “Investigation of CBI also discloses that the evidence collected so far has prima facie disclosed that these public servants allegedly committed offences under section 7 and 11 of the Prevention of Corruption (Amendment) Act 2018, in discharge of their official functions and duties as public servants,” the CBI’s letter said.
Besides, the CBI has also sought similar sanction for the then Deputy Superintendent of Police CID EB Sridhara, Inspector and SHO (station house officer) Commercial Street Police Station M Ramesh and sub-inspector of the station P Gowrishankar and the then Assistant Commissioner Bengaluru North Sub Division LC Nagaraj.
Sridhara was the inquiry officer and Hemant Nimbalkar was the supervisory officer in the inquiry done by CID’s Economic Offences Wing into activities of IMA group entities.
The CBI found that so far, more than Rs 4,000 crore of deposits were illegally raised from lakhs of investors of IMA and that the CID gave a clean chit to the company and its promoter-director Mohammed Mansoor Khan.
As a result, activities of the IMA group continued unhindered, which facilitated the collection of hundreds of crore from thousands of investors. This was revealed during the Special Investigation Team’s probe into the matter before the CBI took over the case earlier in 2019.
LC Nagaraj also inquired into the affairs of IMA and gave a clean chit without conducting a proper probe, CBI sources said.
The clean chit was given on the grounds that no unauthorised deposits were collected and investments of partners, limited liability, partnership are exempted under the Karnataka Protection of Interest of Depositors in Financial Establishments Act, 2004 or KPID Act.
The agency probe revealed that Hilori, who allegedly directly supervised Ramesh and Gowrishankar, had failed to register cases in spite of receiving several written complaints from the Revenue Department officials and social activists, the sources said.