Bengaluru, May 17: A day after the arrest of senior IAS officer Gangaram Baderiya for allowing a mining company to lift iron ore after receiving a bribe of Rs 10 lakh through cheque, JD(S) leader and former chief minister H D Kumaraswamy has filed an anticipatory bail application in the same illegal mining case.
Kumaraswamy filed the application before the Lokayukta Special Court seeking interim anticipatory bail. The court has posted the matter for orders to Wednesday.
A source in the SIT said that the court has not issued notice to the SIT in the application.
Baderiya was arrested by the SIT for allowing Jantakal Enterprises to lift iron ore based on two forged letters purportedly issued by Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF).
In the file noting, it was stated that there was pressure from the chief minister to accord permit to the company within two hours. Kumaraswamy was the chief minister during that time.
Meanwhile, Kumaraswamy told reporters in Yadgir that he has not done anything wrong in the renewal of Jantakal Enterprises lease and ore transport case.
In August 2015, Kumaraswamy was arrested and released on anticipatory bail in the case of granting mining lease to Sri Sai Venkateshwara Minerals (SSVM), also owned by Goel.
This case was registered by the SIT based on certain illegalities in granting mining lease to SSVM, mentioned in the Lokayukta report (part-2).
Of the 29 applications received by the Director of Mines and Geology in respect of land in NEB Range (Sandur taluk, Ballari district), SSVM's was the last application. However, on October 5, 2007, when the file was placed, Kumaraswamy made a note directing the officials to consider SSVM for the lease.
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