From Our Special Correspondent
Daijiworld Media Network

BANGALORE, JUN 25:  Karnataka’s tourism and infrastructure minister G Janardhana Reddy has asserted that he as well as his elder brother and revenue minister G Karunakar Reddy were ``not against conducting a joint survey of border areas of Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh or the illegal mining activities.’’

The two ministers, who were reportedly miffed at chief minister B S Yeddyurappa and were conspicuously absent in several official as well as ruling BJP functions including the Vikasa Sankalpa Utsav to mark the completion of the government’s  first year in office,  had attended the state high level clearance committee meeting along with large and medium industries minister Murugesh Nirani held in the chief minister’s home office `Krishna’ on Wednesday. The Reddy brothers, who are derided by the opposition parties as Bellary mining lords, had also criciticised Yeddyurappa’s style of functioning.

 Talking to reporters after a meeting for review of his department’s performance by the chief minister, Janardhana Reddy, who shot into media limelight when he levelled a Rs 150 crore bribery charge against former chief minister H D Kumaraswamy as an MLC even when JD(S) and BJP were coalition partners, made it clear that he and his brother had no objections for conducting a joint survey to correctly demarcate the boundary between the two States.

Reddy said his brother Karunakara Reddy had written to the Survey of India long ago to take up a joint survey to correctly demarcate the boundary between the two States.

``We are not against conducting the survey of boundary or of illegal mining activities,’’ he said claiming that he and his family was also opposed to illegal mining in the State.’’

The government has requested the Survey of India to take up the survey by taking the assistance of officials of both the States with their records supporting their claims to resolve the problem, he said.

Reddy, who is one of the owners of the Obalapuram mining company operating in Andhra Pradesh, said the letter to the Director-General, Survey of India, Dehradun, the Government said: ``There is an inter-State boundary dispute between Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh in the border of Bellary taluk of Bellary district in Karnataka and Rayadurga taluk of Anantapur district in Andhra Pradesh.’’

The allegations levelled by the leaders of Congress and JD(S) parties, including former Minister Diwakar Babu, on illegal mining in Bellary were ``totally baseless’’ and dubbed latter’s campaign on the issue as ``political stunt’’ as ``the people of the district had cornered him politically.’’

Answering questions on the Bellary Ministers’ exerting pressure on the chief minister, Reddy said they had not exerted any pressure and had no differences with Yeddyurappa. ``The government would complete its full term under Yeddyurapa , who is and will continue to be our undisputed leader,’’ he said and asked opposition parties not to waste their energies in trying to create problems within the ruling party.

On the controversial withdrawal of criminal cases against Reddy brother the minister defended the cabinet decision and said the chief minister knew what was good and bad. ``This is not the first time that the cabinet withdrawn cases against ministers or leaders,’’ he claimed.