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Pala MLA Mani C Kappan has been sentenced to one year of simple imprisonment by a Mumbai court in a cheque-bounce case linked to falsely promising shares in Kannur International Airport. The Additional Metropolitan Magistrate’s Court in Borivali also directed Kappan to pay Rs 1.20 crore as compensation to the complainant, along with 9% simple interest from the date of the order until the amount is realised.
The court, presided over by Judge SA Khalane, convicted Kappan under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881. He has been directed to pay the compensation within one month. Failure to do so will result in an additional three months of imprisonment.
The court also directed the police to issue a non-bailable warrant for the execution of the sentence.
The case was filed by Mumbai-based businessman Dinesh Menon who in 2019 had alleged that Kappan swindled him of Rs 3.5 crore after promising shares of Kannur International Airport (KIAL).
The latest conviction comes after a series of legal proceedings involving Kappan. The Kerala High Court had earlier declined to interfere with the framing of charges against him in the case.
However, a special court in Ernakulam subsequently acquitted Kappan of the criminal charges in February 2025. The Ernakulam court had dealt with the criminal proceedings arising from the same broader dispute.
Kappan, a United Democratic Front MLA, has maintained that the case against him was politically motivated. He had also alleged that the case was intended to prevent him from taking up a ministerial position that he claimed had been promised to him.
Sources close to Kappan said he will challenge the Mumbai court verdict before the appellate court.