Expert panel will pick Rajyotsava awardees, state tells High Court

The state government on Wednesday submitted to the High Court that a 22-member expert committee had been constituted to select names for the Rajyotsava award.

The submission was made in response to a petition filed by B V Satyanarayana Rao, who has approached the court seeking directions to the government to consider his application for the state award. 

The government has said that former High Court judge Justice H N Nagamohan Das will be the chairman of the committee which will study, examine and suggest the eligibility criteria and guidelines for selecting the awardees.

The committee is expected to submit a report to the government in the first week of October. Justice S Abdul Nazeer, appreciating the government’s efforts in constituting the committee, adjourned the hearing to August 22.

Plea on ACB
The High Court has ordered notice to the government and the Lokayukta in a PIL seeking directions to the government to quash the notification granting police powers to the Anti-corruption Bureau (ACB). 

The petitioner, B N Vasudeva Reddy, has contended that the Karnataka Lokayukta Act, 1984, that was passed by both Houses of the legislature had a statutory force.

Following the formation of the ACB, Lokayukta had been deprived of the power to investigate and take action in cases pending before it. The petitioner had sought directions to the government not to interfere or obstruct Lokayukta from exercising its power to investigate.

A division bench comprising Chief Justice S K Mukherjee and Justice Ravi Malimath ordered notice and adjourned the hearing.

Bellandur Lake
The High Court on Wednesday directed the petitioner to give a representation to the Deputy Commissioner (DC), Bengaluru with regard to a PIL seeking directions to clean Bellandur Lake.
 
A division bench comprising Chief Justice S K Mukherjee and Justice Ravi Malimath directed the DC to form a committee and to include all the stakeholders to look into the matter of cleaning the lake. The petitioner, Srinivas R, and others had contended that despite efforts being made by different government agencies, Bellandur Lake is being polluted and foam caused due to chemical reaction forms on the lake every now and then.