A journalist with a well-known Kannada news channel has been booked for allegedly blackmailing and extorting ₹25 lakh from a doctor who runs an ayurveda college on the outskirts of the city. The accused, Kiran Shanbog, whose employment was subsequently terminated after the scam came to light, is on the run and efforts are on to nab him.
According to the police, Kiran met the victim, Dr A.V. Srinivasan, in November 2018 while he was getting ready to open the college. He allegedly told the doctor that he had some negative information about him, and would run it on the news channel a day before the inauguration if he did not pay him some money. In his complaint to the police, Dr. Srinivasan said that he was also a trustee of the Sri Paripoorna Sanathana Charitable Trust, which has offices in Nelamangala, and had relied on donations from philanthropists in India and abroad to start the college.
Fearing for his reputation, he arranged for ₹25 lakh to pay Kiran.
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“However, a few days ago, the accused contacted Dr. Srinivasan and demanded more money,” said the police.
Unable to meet the demand, Dr. Srinivasan approached the police and filed a complaint on Monday.
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* On March 20, Hemanth Kashyap, who worked with Kannada news channel Public TV and has since been dismissed, was arrested for allegedly blackmailing Padma Shri Dr. Ramana Rao B, 68, with a video clip. He was remanded in judicial custody and is currently out on bail.
On March 27, four mediapersons were arrested for allegedly blackmailing and extorting a sonologist in Vijayapura after falsely accusing him of conducting a sex determination test