The High Court of Karnataka on Friday directed the Anti- Corruption Bureau (ACB) to submit in a sealed cover the status report on the investigation in the case pertaining to alleged charges of bribery to provide preferential treatment to V K Sasikala, aide of former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa, at Central Prison Parappana Agrahara.
A division bench, headed by Chief Justice Abhay Shreeniwas Oka, passed this direction after the counsel for the petitioner drew the attention of the court that ACB has not carried out any investigation in the case.
The petition filed by one K S Gita, an educationist from Chennai, was disposed of with a direction to the ACB to complete the probe within two months. The order was passed on June 11, 2021. The petitioner showed a newspaper report and contended that ACB has raided the Hindalga prison official.
Meanwhile, the counsel representing the anti-graft agency sought further time to complete the investigation. The bench directed the ACB to place on record a detailed report on the investigation carried out in a sealed cover. The matter has been posted to August 25.
Sasikala was convicted in the multi-crore disproportionate assets case and served a four-year sentence at Parappana Agrahara prison. The petitioner alleged that retired IAS officer Vinay Kumar, appointed by the state government, had submitted a voluminous report indicating preferential treatment to Sasikala.
(Published 13 August 2021, 17:14 IST)
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