Jantakal mining case: Arrest of Kumaraswamy now appears imminent
- Local court rejects Kumaraswamy's plea to allow anticipatory bail
- He had approached the court after senior bureaucrat Gangaram Baderiya was arrested by the Special Investigation Team
- "I'm not worried. My advocates will decide future course of action," says Kumaraswamy
FollowWith Bengaluru court refusing to accept anticipatory bail plea sought by former chief minister HD Kumaraswamy in corruption charges, the arrest of JD(S) state president now appears imminent. It may be recalled here that Kumaraswamy had been given seven-day interim relief by a local court here - on May 17 - on corruption charges including the Jantakal mining case. He was instructed to appear before the Special Investigation Team (SIT) within a week.
It is alleged that when Kumaraswamy was the chief minister, he facilitated a major mining scam allegedly to help Mumbai-based company Jantakal Enterprises. He allegedly pressurised a bureaucrat - Gangaram Baderia who was also arrested last month - to renew the firm's mining licence clearly violating all the guidelines. The arrest of senior bureaucrat Baderia forced Kumaraswamy to seek anticipatory bail from the court.
IAS officer Gangaram Baderiya was arrested on charges of forging documents from environment and forest department to grant permission to Jantakal Enterprises to illegally lift iron ore from Chitradurga by the Lokayukta Special Investigation Team (SIT). The SIT is investigating into the illegal mining report submitted by former Lokayukta Justice Santosh Hegde.
It is alleged that in 2007, Baderiya had written to his superior - commissioner mines and geology, stating that there was immense pressure from the chief minister (Kumaraswamy) to permit Janthakal Enterprises to lift the iron ore from Chitradurga. Following these charges, Kumaraswamy was summoned by the SIT for an inquiry. The arrested bureaucrat had received kickbacks from the mining company for allowing permit, it is alleged. The arrest of the bureaucrat Baderiya, Secretary of Revenue Department is the first such incident in the state where an IAS officer was arrested while in service.
Meanwhile, speaking to mediapersons here on Tuesday, Kumaraswamy said he is not worried by the development. "My lawyer will look into the details. I'm not worried," he said.
