Mysuru: A City Court has slapped a penalty of Rs. 13 lakh on a lecturer found guilty in cheque bounce cases. Kuppali Rishwanath, a Kannada lecturer at Kuvempunagar Government FGC in city, had received Rs. 10 lakh as advance from one R.K. Nagarathna, a resident of Vijayanagar 2nd Stage, on the promise of allotting a 50×80 ft. site for Rs. 11 lakh after forming a Layout at Sindhuvalli in Nanjangud, in December 2007. But as the Layout remained on papers, Rishwanath in a bid to return the money to Nagarathna, gave her  three cheques for the principal amount of Rs. 10 lakh along with 12% annual interest. However, the cheques, when presented at the bank bounced, compelling Nagarathna to move the Court, where she filed three cases.

The Fifth JMFC Court Judge Dhanawathi, who heard the cases, ordered Rishwanath to pay a penalty of Rs. 2.60 lakh in one case and Rs. 5.20 lakh in each of the two other cases, totalling Rs. 13 lakh, out of which the complainant Nagarathna should get Rs. 12.85 lakh and the rest Rs. 15,000 be paid to the Government as Court expenses within 3 months, failing which the guilty Rishwanath would have to undergo a six-month jail term.

Advocate K. Eshwar Bhat argued on behalf of Nagarathna.