Kumaraswamy, wife get 2 more days exemption

This is the second time since Aug 30 they have been granted exemption from personal appearance on "health grounds".

When counsel for the accused moved an application seeking exemption from personal appearance, Lokayukta special court judge N K Sudhindra Rao accepted it, but however directed them to "appear without fail on September 7".

Earlier counsel for the third accused, Vinod Goel, Managing Director of Jentakal Mining Company, who was present in court, filed an application for bail.

The court also granted time till Sept 7 to counsel for the complainant, advocate Vinod Kumar to file his objections to the bail application.

Earlier, Hazmath Pasha,counsel for Kumaraswamy and his wife filed applications seeking exemption from personal appearance under Sec 205 CrPC on health grounds and Sec 317,asking for 15 days time as they had filed an anticipatory bail application before the High Court,which will come up for hearing tomorrow.

On August 8, the court had issued summons to all three, directing them to appear before it on August 30.

Vinod Kumar had alleged that Kumaraswamy illegally recommended renewal of mining licence of Jantakkal mining company and also allotted land to a private housing society when he was Chief Minister heading the JDS-BJP coalition government and that the society in turn allotted a residential site to his wife.

The court recalled that on August 30 when the accused were required to appear before it in response to the Aug 8 summons, counsel had filed similar applications, which was acceded to "only on health grounds, asking them to appear without fail on September 5".

The court granted exemption today, considering their claim of suffering "hypertension and giddiness" for the past two days, but directed them to appear before it on September 7.

Counsel for complainant R L Patil opposed the applications, saying they were "deliberate and intentional and the applications were defiant and adamant".

Quoting press reports, he alleged the accused are "actually leading normal lives and by producing false medical certificates want to seek exemption from personal appearance".

Pasha submitted his clients were innocent and the applications are "definitely not deliberate and intentional".

"We are seeking legal remedies which cannot be denied to us", he stated,referring to the anticipatory bail applications filed before the High Court.

"We will cooperate and give an undertaking that we will appear in future (depending on the outcome of the bail application). We are not disputing our identity", Pasha submitted.