JAGATSINGHPUR: The Chief Judicial Magistrate of Jagatsinghpur, Nilima Panda has convicted the president of the Congress block unit Manas Kumar Rath to two years of rigorous imprisonment in a cheque bounce case. The judge also imposed a fine of Rs 3 lakh.
Sources said, Rath borrowed Rs 2 lakh from his colleague, Sanjay Kumar Behera on August 20,2020 with a promise to repay it within a month. However, Rath failed to return the amount within the agreed time-frame, even after a year had passed.
To settle the debt, Rath issued a cheque to Behera in 2021. When Behera deposited the cheque, it was returned due to insufficient funds in Rath’s account. Behera had filed a petition in the local court seeking compensation for the bounced cheque.
Following court proceedings, the CJM convicted Rath and sentenced him to two years of RI and also imposing a fine of Rs 3 lakh as compensation for Behera.