Gowda gets notice for violating construction rules

The Karnataka High Court today ordered issue of emergent notices to Chief Minister D V Sadananda Gowda on a PIL petition charging him with violation of rules in undertaking construction on a plot alloted to him here in 2007 under discretionary quota.

A division bench headed by Justice D V Shylendra Kumar gave the order when the PIL filed by a woman claiming to be a journalist came up for hearing.

Notices were also issued to city civic body Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike, Bangalore Development Authority and the state chief secretary.

Earlier, when the PIL came up for hearing in August last year, days after Gowda assumed charge as chief minister, a division bench headed by then Chief Justice J S Khehar, sought to know "the motive" behind filing the petition.

Rapping the petitioner for targetting the new chief minister, Justice Khehar had then sought to know whether there was any public interest involved in it or was it merely to seek publicity. He had granted the petitioner four weeks to file an affidavit on the public interest element of the PIL.

The petitioner had charged Sadananda Gowda with violating rules by amalgamating the plot, alloted to him in the HSR Layout under the chief minister's discretionary quota during the JDS-BJP coalition regime, with that of former BJP chief whip D N Jeevaraj and jointly "illegally" constructing a five floor building.

The court sought to know as to why the petitioner had waited for the building to go up to the fifth floor to file a PIL.