Accused in milk powder diversion case in police custody

Belagavi Police have registered a case against Kiran Veerangouda Patil, an accused in the gold missing case, and some police officers in connection with a case of diversion of milk powder meant for schoolchildren in Bagalkot district. This is the fourth case in which Kiran Patil is an accused in North Karnataka districts. He has obtained bail in one of the cases, regarding using a fake police identity card.

In a criminal case filed by the CID officers at the Camp Police Station, three persons, including Kiran Patil, have been accused of interfering with the investigation of the milk powder diversion case filed in Jamkhandi in Bagalkot district last year. The other accused are named only as unidentified police officers.

Bagalkot District Police have, earlier, seized around 15 tonnes of milk powder, estimated at ₹36 lakh from a warehouse in Jamkhandi. It was said that this was meant for distribution under the Ksheera Bhagya Scheme but it was diverted to the black market. The case was transferred to the CID later.

CID Police arrested Shivanand Angadi, husband of Snehal Angadi, president of the Mahalingpur Town Municipal Corporation, in this connection.

The charge against Kiran Patil and the unnamed police officers is that they tried to interfere with the investigation and used illegal means to get the arrested relieved of the charge.

Kiran Patil and the others were said to be part of an illegal financial transaction held in a luxury hotel in Belagavi city in November 2020 that was aimed at shielding Shivanand Angadi and other accused.

CID Police have obtained a six-day police custody of Kiran Patil. Further investigation will reveal which police officers were involved, an investigator with access to information related to the case, said.