Lokayukta police to probe against Chief Minister

Fast Track Court wants charges investigated in six weeks

Judge C B Hipparagi also directed the Lokayuta police to submit a report within six weeks. The matter has been posted to May 4.

A similar order handing over the probe to Lokayukta with directions to submit a report within six weeks was also issued by the judge in the complaint filed against Minister R Ashoka about illegal land acquisition. The matter has been posted to May 4.

The order to hand over the probe to Lokayukta police in the Chief Minister’s case is for the first complaint filed by the two advocates Sirajin Basha and K N Balaraj who had quoted three instances of transactions related to land.

Converted to non-agriculture

In the first instance, the complainants had said that 1.12 acres in Rachenahalli village in Bangalore East taluk in the Arkavathy Layout meant for public was denotified by Yeddyurappa in 2006 who then held the portfolios of Urban Development and Bangalore Development Authority, in violation of rules and regulations.

The status of the agriculture land was subsequently converted to non-agriculture and sold to Yeddyurappa's son B Y Vijayendra and his son-in-law Sohan Kumar for Rs 40 lakh. Both, in turn, sold the land to South West Mining Limited for Rs 20 crore, making an unlawful gain of Rs 19.6 crore, the petitioners had claimed.

The second instance was the ‘illegal sale’ of 1.6 acres on Survey No 56 in Arkavathy Layout by former minister S N Krisnaiah Setty to Dhavalagiri Developers of which Vijayendra and Yeddyurappa’s another son B Y Raghavendra were directors, for Rs 60 lakh against the market value of Rs eight crore, he said.

The third charge was amalgamation of 18 metres of road areas and site nos 1 to 10 in Arkavathy Layout by the Chief Minister on the application of a woman named Akkamma, and others. Akkamma and others were set up by the accused with an ulterior motive to appropriate property for themselves for unlawful gain by causing loss to state exchequer, the complaint stated.

Counsel Hanumantharaya contended that by indulging in these ‘illegal’ transactions, the accused had committed offences under various IPC sections including forgery, cheating and impersonation and also under certain sections of Prevention of Corruption Act including abuse of power.

Plaint against Ashoka

A private petition against Home Minister Ashoka has been lodged with the Lokayukta special court regarding denotification of land.

The petition was filed under sections 420 and 406 of Indian Penal Code following a complaint by M Manjunath, a resident of Vijayanagar in Bangalore of denotification of land in the RMV Extension area.

The Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) had acquired 23 guntas of land in 1978.

Ashoka had bought 14 guntas in 2003 and 9 guntas in 2007 from 12 original owners.

Manjunath in his complaint alleged that the minister threw norms to winds by purchasing the land which had already been acquired.