FIR lodged against JPP candidate for trying to bribe scribe

An FIR has been lodged against Jharkhand People's Party candidate for the Jamshedpur Lok Sabha seat Surya Singh Besra and another party leader for allegedly trying to bribe a scribe, the police said Tuesday. The FIR under section 171(E) (bribery) and 171(F) (undue influence at an election) of the Indian Penal Code and 136 Representative of People's Act was registered against Besra and Kritibas Mandal on the basis of a complaint by the journalist, an officer of the Sakchi police station said here.

Election to the Jamshedpur Lok Sabha seat will be held on May 12. Besra is Jharkhand People's Party president while Kritibas Mandal is the president of the party's East Singhbhum district committee.

Journalist Annie Amrita has alleged that Mandal attempted to bribe her to influence the parliamentary election while a press conference was being addressed by Besra in a city hotel here on Monday. She alleged Mandal called her out of the press conference venue and offered an envelope apparently containing currency notes.

Based on the complaint, the C-Vigil Magistrate Abhinav Kumar Mishra, directed the police station concerned to register a case against the two leaders for allegedly violating Model Code of Conduct in force and allegedly making an attempt to influence the poll by offering a bribe. The FIR was registered after police verified the CCTV footage in the hotel premises, the officer said.

Amrita said she had raised an objection about the incident before Besra. She also informed the Returning Officer-cum-Deputy Commissioner of East Singhbhum Amit Kumar, who ordered an immediate investigation.