Two RTI activists have filed a private complaint against Yusuf Sharief alias D Babu of Umrah Developers in the Lokayukta Special Court in connection with the attempt to bribe the Chief Justice of Karnataka High Court, Justice S K Mukherjee.
The complainants -
S Bhaskaran and Jayakumar Hiremath - have sought directions to the deputy superintendent of police of the Anti-Corruption Bureau or the assistant commissioner of police, High Grounds police station, to file an FIR on Sharief’s involvement in the attempt to bribe the chief justice.
The activists had approached the High Grounds police earlier, but their complaint was not registered. The police had issued an endorsement directing them to move the court.
On July 5, the chief justice made a disclosure in the open court saying that a Bengali-speaking man had visited his official residence and offered a bribe to write an order in his favour.
Justice Mukherjee had said that the man had written the serial number of the revision petition filed by Umrah Developers on his (visitor’s) business card. The chief justice had showed the business card in the open court.
The petition was subsequently heard by a division bench comprising Justices Mohan M Shantanagoudar and R B Budihal on July 13 and adjourned for a week.
A few advocates had approached the chief justice seeking the latter to reveal the identity of the person who attempted to bribe him.
Proutist Universal, an NGO, has written to the Governor and the Chief Justice of India seeking sanction to prosecute Justice Mukherjee for not taking any action against the person who attempted to bribe him.
Published 17 July 2016, 20:33 IST