Karnataka HC Issues Notice to Janardhana Reddy
New Delhi, Feb 25, (PTI): The Karnataka High Court today issued notice to Tourism Minister G Janardhana Reddy, on a public interest writ petition, asking him to appear in court in connection with a criminal case at Sandur in Bellary district.
When the PIL filed by city-based advocate G R Mohan came up for hearing before the division bench comprising Chief Justice J S Khehar and Justice A S Bopanna, the court ordered issue of notice to the minister and permitted the petitioner to implead the Director of Obulapuram Mining Company (OMC) Ramachandra Reddy.
The petitioner submitted that Reddy, facing a criminal case on illegal mining in the Judicial Magistrate's court with a non bailable warrant issued against him, "does not care for the court order and was not appearing before the court" despite the summons issued to him. The court adjourned the hearing of the petition to March 25.
SC Orders Probe into Illegal Mining in Bellary
New Delhi, Feb 25, (PTI): The Supreme Court today ordered a probe by its committee into alleged illegal mining in Bellary and other forest areas of Karnataka.
A bench headed by Chief Justice S H Kapadia asked the apex court-appointed Central Empowered Committee to conduct the probe and file its report within six weeks.
The court passed the order on an oral mention made by advocate Prashant Bhushan who said that the report of the Karnataka Lokayukta clearly stated that mining activities were being carried not only illegally but also stretched to areas categorised as forest land.
"Rampant illegal mining is going on in Karnataka and the same has been recorded by detailed report of Lokayukta Justice Santosh Hegde," he pleaded before a bench also comprising justices Aftab Alam and K S Radhakrishanan.
Earlier, the bench had directed the CEC to probe the Andhra Pradesh side of the Bellary region.