Forest land issue: HC relief for Ramesh Kumar

The High Court on Thursday dismissed the criminal revision petition filed by the State government challenging a lower court order, which had stated that the land purchased by Congress MLA from Srinivasapur K R Ramesh Kumar didn’t fall in the reserve forest area.

 

Kumar, a former speaker,  had purchased 59 acres of land in the Hosahudya Forest range in Kolar district.  The Forest department had contended the said land was in the reserve forest area, and the transaction violated the Forest (Conservation) Act.

The lower court in Kolar
had ordered for a joint survey to check if the said land was in the forest area.  In the joint survey conducted on March 8, 2013, by the then deputy commissioner of Kolar the late D K Ravi, Deputy Conservator of Forest and Deputy Director of Land Records, it was found that the forest boundary line in the said area was not in order and that the land purchased by Ramesh Kumar was 500 metres away from the reserve forest area. 

Further, when the Forest department challenged the order, the same was dismissed by the lower court.

Upholding the lower court order, Justice A V Chandrashekhara dismissed the petition filed by the State government.