The Bijapur Fast Track Court on Wednesday sentenced eight men to 10 years' rigorous imprisonment for circulating counterfeit currency notes in and around Bijapur district in 2001.
Eleven people were accused in the case. They were: Ayubnoorshah Makandar, Niyaz Ahmed Choudhari, Komal Shah Vamjishah, Abdulgafar Rajesaab Chigari, Basavaraj Surendra Naik, Basappa Mahalingappa Sanakal, Parappa Timmanna Biradar, Manjunath Udupi, Basha Ibrahimsaab, Ismail Patel and Nagaraj.
Makandar and Patel died while Nagaraj is absconding. The remaining eight accused were present in the court during the judgment.
According to official sources, the case had come to light in 2001 when an accused was caught red-handed by the police while circulating a fake currency note of Rs. 100. During interrogation, the accused named 11 key persons involved in the case. After a thorough inquiry, the police arrested all of them and produced them before the court. However, all the accused were released on bail a few months later.
On October 31, the court held all the accused guilty and postponed the judgment to Wednesday as all the accused were not present in court. V.G. Hagargond was the public prosecutor.
