Former Manmul President U C Shivakumar Arrested in Mandya Milk Adulteration Case

Mandya Milk Union Limited (Manmul) director and former president U C Shivakumar was arrested by police in Mandya on Sunday night in connection with the skimmed milk powder adulteration case. Following the arrest, he was produced before a court in Maddur and remanded in judicial custody, police said.

The arrest followed allegations raised in an audio clip said to be of Manmul Purchase Officer Pradeep Kumar Jadhav, who claimed that Shivakumar was involved in the adulteration operation. Jadhav, who was already in judicial custody in connection with the investigation, was taken into police custody on Saturday.

Police subsequently conducted a face-to-face inquiry involving Jadhav and Shivakumar across Saturday and Sunday. During the confrontation, Jadhav levelled allegations directly against Shivakumar, leading to a heated exchange of words between the two.

The investigation into the adulteration has been transferred from Maddur Inspector H S Naveen to Malavalli Sub-division Deputy Superintendent of Police (DySP) S B Yashwant Kumar.

With Shivakumar taken into custody, the total number of arrests in the Manmul case has risen to six. The case involves the adulteration of 57 tonnes of skimmed milk powder.

Police stated that the prime accused in the case, Manmul Milk Powder unit chief T Ramakrishna, remains at large.