Five farmers held for chopping MNREGS official's hand

The Ramanagaram police on Saturday arrested five persons on the charge of chopping the hand of an officer who had refused to clear inflated bills for works executed under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MNREGS).

According to the police, the arrested are Chennakeshava, 27, Lakshman, 32, Manjunath, 27, Punith, 21 and Sham, 26, all farmers and residents of Kunigal taluk in Tumakuru district. Ramanagaram SP Chandragupta said, “The suspects were arrested from Channammanakere Achukattu area in Bengaluru.

“They were hiding at one of their friend's house. During the investigation, we questioned several people who gave information about the suspects.”

H R Srinivasa, a technical coordinator with TDS Placements and Services Private Limited (TDSPSPL), was attacked on September 12 near Talakere village in Magadi taluk of Ramanagaram district.

The Tumakuru district administration has outsourced implementation of the works under the MNREGS to TDSPSPL.

Chennakeshava and Manjunath had employed labourers for creating two groundwater recharge pits under the MNREGS at Bagenahalli village in Kunigal taluk. They had produced a bill for Rs 69,000 for the work. Srinivasa, however, had reduced amount to Rs 42,000 saying that the bill was inflated and the work was of poor quality.

Enraged by this, the two barged into the Kunigal Taluk Panchayat office around noon on September 12 and abused Srinivas. Later, the gang attacked Srinivasa with a machete near Talakere village when he was riding on his bike to Magadi around 7.30 pm, the police said.