Kadapa Airport official gets 3-year jail in CBI bribery case
Synopsis
A Special CBI Court in Kurnool has convicted a former Kadapa Airport director for demanding a ₹50,000 bribe from a contractor — closing a case that took nearly a decade to reach verdict. The red-handed trap, the charge sheet, and now the three-year sentence form a textbook CBI prosecution arc, even as a separate West Bengal crackdown uncovers ₹28 crore in cash and 15 kg of gold linked to an absconding quarry owner.
Key Takeaways
The Special CBI Court, Kurnool sentenced Mukundagiri Rangachari Srinivasan to 3 years Rigorous Imprisonment and a ₹50,000 fine on Monday .
Srinivasan was Officiating Airport Director at Kadapa Airport when he allegedly demanded a ₹50,000 bribe from a contractor.
The CBI caught him red-handed accepting ₹25,000 as the first instalment; the case was registered on 24 July 2015 .
In a separate case, Birbhum District Police arrested Sitesh Pramanik , manager of absconding quarry owner Tulu Mondal .
Police had earlier recovered ₹28 crore in cash and 15 kg of gold (worth ~ ₹22 crore ) from the residence of Tulu Mondal's relative Minar Mondal .
A Special CBI Court in Kurnool, Andhra Pradesh, on Monday sentenced a former senior official of Kadapa Airport to three years of Rigorous Imprisonment and a fine of ₹50,000 in a bribery case that has been in the courts for nearly a decade. The conviction closes a case first registered by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on 24 July 2015.
Who Was Convicted and What He Did
Mukundagiri Rangachari Srinivasan, who served as Assistant General Manager (Air Traffic Management) and Officiating Airport Director at Kadapa Airport, was found guilty of demanding a bribe of ₹50,000 from a contractor. According to the CBI, Srinivasan allegedly abused his position as a public servant, conditioning the timely processing of pending bills and the withdrawal of a potential blacklisting threat against the complainant's firm on the payment of the bribe.
How the CBI Caught Him
Investigators laid a trap and caught Srinivasan red-handed while he was accepting ₹25,000 — the first instalment of the demanded amount. The CBI subsequently filed a charge sheet on 29 February 2016, setting the stage for a trial that concluded nearly nine years after the case was first registered.
Significance of the Verdict
The conviction is part of a broader CBI push to prosecute corruption among airport and aviation management officials. Kadapa Airport, a smaller regional facility in Andhra Pradesh, falls under the jurisdiction of the Airports Authority of India (AAI), whose officials are classified as public servants under anti-corruption statutes. Notably, the case underscores how even mid-level officials wielding procurement and blacklisting powers can extract rents from contractors — a pattern the CBI has flagged repeatedly across infrastructure projects.
Separate Case: West Bengal Stone-Quarry Crackdown
In an unrelated development, Birbhum District Police in West Bengal on Monday morning arrested Sitesh Pramanik, the manager of an absconding stone-quarry owner identified as Tulu Mondal, also known as Mohammad Nazibuddin. Pramanik's arrest follows the detention last week of Minar Mondal, a close relative of Tulu Mondal, from whose residence police recovered ₹28 crore in unaccounted cash and 15 kilograms of gold estimated at approximately ₹22 crore.
During interrogation, Minar Mondal reportedly confessed that the seized assets belonged to Tulu Mondal and that he had been entrusted with their safekeeping. Police subsequently seized Tulu Mondal's residence at Suri in Birbhum district. Pramanik is now being questioned about the source of the recovered cash and gold, as investigators work to trace Tulu Mondal, who remains at large.
What Comes Next
In the Kurnool case, Srinivasan may challenge the sentence in a higher court. In the West Bengal matter, police are expected to press Pramanik for leads on Tulu Mondal's whereabouts and the origin of the seized assets. Both cases reflect intensifying anti-corruption and asset-recovery operations across Indian states.
Point of View
Charge sheet, conviction. But the gap between the 2015 trap and the 2024 verdict raises questions about court capacity in special CBI tribunals. Meanwhile, the Birbhum cash-and-gold haul points to a parallel economy in the extractive sector that local administration clearly tolerated for years. The real accountability question in West Bengal is not just about Tulu Mondal — it is about who looked the other way while ₹50 crore in assets accumulated under a stone-quarry operation.
NationPress
3 Aug 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
Who was sentenced by the CBI court in Kurnool?
Mukundagiri Rangachari Srinivasan, the former Assistant General Manager (Air Traffic Management) and Officiating Airport Director at Kadapa Airport, was sentenced to three years of Rigorous Imprisonment and fined ₹50,000 by the Special CBI Court in Kurnool, Andhra Pradesh.
What was the bribery case against the Kadapa Airport official?
Srinivasan allegedly demanded ₹50,000 from a contractor to process pending bills quickly and to avoid initiating blacklisting proceedings against the contractor's firm. The CBI caught him red-handed accepting ₹25,000 as the first instalment of the bribe.
When was the CBI case against Srinivasan registered?
The CBI registered the case on 24 July 2015. A charge sheet was filed on 29 February 2016, and the Special CBI Court in Kurnool delivered its verdict nearly nine years after the case was first registered.
What happened in the Birbhum stone-quarry case in West Bengal?
Birbhum District Police arrested Sitesh Pramanik, the manager of absconding quarry owner Tulu Mondal, on Monday. The arrest follows the earlier recovery of ₹28 crore in cash and 15 kg of gold from the residence of Minar Mondal, a relative of Tulu Mondal, who reportedly confessed the assets belonged to his relative.
Is Tulu Mondal in custody?
No. Tulu Mondal, also known as Mohammad Nazibuddin, remains at large as of Monday. Police have arrested his relative Minar Mondal and his manager Sitesh Pramanik, and have seized his residence in Suri, Birbhum district, as part of ongoing investigations.
