MP Congress legislator gets 3-year jail in bank fraud case

New Delhi: Congress MLA Rajendra Bharti from Madhya Pradesh was on Thursday sentenced to three years’ imprisonment by a Delhi court in connection with a bank fraud case.

Bharti, who represents the Datia Assembly constituency and defeated senior BJP heavyweight Dr Narottam Mishra, the then Home Minister in the Shivraj Singh Chouhan regime, in the 2023 polls, was convicted along with his aide Raghuveer Sharan Prajapati, a former employee of the Zila Sahkari Krishi Gramin Vikas Bank, Datia.

The Rouse Avenue Court in Delhi awarded both the convicts three-year jail terms in a case involving cheating and forgery of bank records to obtain illegal interest payments between 1998 and 2011. Special Judge Dig Vinay Singh also imposed a fine of Rs 1 lakh on Bharti and Rs 1.5 lakh on Prajapati, directing that the amount be used as compensation for the bank.

According to the prosecution, Bharti’s late mother had deposited Rs 10 lakh in 1998 in the name of a family-run trust as a fixed deposit for three years at an interest rate of 13.5 per cent. However, the accused allegedly tampered with bank records using correction fluid and overwriting to extend the deposit period by 10 to 15 years, enabling continued withdrawal of interest till 2011 despite falling market rates. The trust is alleged to have illegally withdrawn around Rs 18.5 lakh as interest.

The court held that Bharti, who was chairman of the bank during the relevant period, used his position to influence employees and facilitate unauthorised payments. Both accused were convicted of criminal conspiracy, cheating, forgery and use of forged documents.

The case, registered in Datia in 2015, was transferred to Delhi by the Supreme Court in October last year following concerns over witness intimidation.

During sentencing, the prosecution sought maximum punishment, citing breach of public trust, while the defence pleaded for leniency, citing Bharti’s public responsibilities and health issues.