NEW DELHI, July 21 - Former Union Minister and ex-Arunachal Chief Minister PK Thungon and three others were today convicted by a Delhi Court in connection with a cheating and corruption case lodged by the CBI 17 years back, after which they were taken into custody.
Special CBI Judge Ajay Kumar Jain held 69-year-old Thungon and others guilty of offences under Sections 120 B (criminal conspiracy) read with 419 (cheating by personation), 420 (cheating), 467 (forgery of valuable security), 468 (forgery for purpose of cheating) and 471 (using as genuine a forged document) of the IPC and under provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act.
The Court ordered that Thungon, who was the then Minister of State, Ministry of Urban Affairs and Employment and three other convicts � Tali Ao, C Sangit and Mahesh Maheshwari � be taken into custody and fixed the matter for arguments on the quantum of sentence on July 27.
�Accordingly, PK Thungon, Tali Ao, C Sangit and Mahesh Maheshwari are convicted and sent to judicial custody,� it said. All the convicts were present in the Court.
According to the CBI, in pursuance to the proposal of the Government of Nagaland, the then Planning Commission had sanctioned an amount of Rs 2 crore for the renovation and upgradation of minor irrigation projects for Nagaland and the money was to be released in two instalments of Rs 1 crore each.
The agency said that pursuant to the sanction of the first instalment of Rs 1 crore by the planning body, the money was kept in civil deposit by the Nagaland Government and on the request of the Joint Director of Irrigation and Flood Control, orders were placed for purchase of �sausage wire� of Rs 50 lakh.
The CBI said that Tali Ao submitted a bill of Rs 29,99,295 and he had requested that a demand draft of Rs 10 lakh should be prepared in favour of one Thanu Thungan and another demand draft of Rs 15 lakh in favour of K Konngon Konyak.
The agency further said that Mezakrol, who was the then Joint Director of Irrigation and Flood Control, got these demand drafts issued.
It said that the demand draft of Rs 9,98,500 issued in favour of Thanu Thungan was deposited on April 25, 1994 at Daryaganj branch of the Vijaya Bank here in an account which was opened by Mahesh Maheshwari. � PTI
