The defamation suit was filed by Indian Police Service officer, Hemanth Nimbalkar, reports Vicky Nanjappa.
Team Anna member and former Karnataka Lokayukta Justice (retd) N Santosh Hegde on Tuesday appealed to Anna Hazare to end his eight-day fast, saying everyone is "honestly" concerned about his health.
"I am happy that justice has prevailed. I hope the government will be alive to having an institution like Lokayukta", he told reporters, recalling the trapping of Sampangi by Loakyukta sleuths when he was the Lokayukta.
Former Karnataka Lokayukta Justice Santosh Hegde on Monday said he was not willing to be Goa Lokayukta, even if that office was offered to him.
Karnataka Governor H R Bharadwaj caught everyone by surprise on Wednesday when he said that he would immediately sign the papers if the government proposed the name of Justice Santosh Hegde for the post of Lokayukta.
Karnataka Governor H R Bhardwaj has rejected the resignation of the state's Lokayukta Justice Santosh Hegde. Sources in the Raj Bhavan, while refusing to reveal details about the governor's decision, confirmed that Justice Hegde's resignation had been rejected.The Lokayukta had tendered his resignation on Wednesday citing the failure of the government to protect the interest of the institution.Hegde slammed the Bharatiya Janata Party government for reneging on its promise.
Former Karnataka Lokayukta Justice (retd) Santosh Hegde on Sunday opposed granting financial assistance to people affected by closure of mining in Goa and expressed doubts over the state government's willingness to implement recommendations of Justice M B Shah Commission.
Lokayukta sources said much of the findings are already in the public domain as the report was leaked.
A last ditch attempt by the Bharatiya Janata Party to refrain Lokayukta Justice Santosh Hegde from resigning has failed. State BJP unit chief K S Eshwarappa, Home Minister Dr V S Acharya and Law Minister Suresh Kumar met Justice Hegde and asked him to reconsider his decision, but the Lokayukta averred that he will not change his mind.
Karnataka Lokayukta Justice N Santosh Hegde's sudden resignation has come as a shock to the state and an embarrassment to the Bharatiya Janata Party government, which is incidentally gearing up for grand celebrations on Friday marking two years in office.
Karnataka Lokayukta Justice Santosh Hegde has decided to withdraw his resignation."If Governor H R Bhardwaj gives me an appointment, I will meet him on Sunday to withdraw my resignation," Hegde told reporters on Saturday.The top anti-corruption official had resigned to protest the Bharatiya Janata Party-led state government's inaction about several of his reports, specially the one about the illegal mining lobby operating in Karnataka.
Justice Santhosh Hegde, former Lokayukta of Karnataka and Team Anna member, has been booked by the police for falsifying charges against an IPS officer.
Problems for Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa continued with the Congress lodging a complaint against him and his sons in connection with a land scam on Friday.
While the Karnataka Lokayukta Justice Santosh Hegde gives final touches to the illegal mining report, the people of Bellary say they are not bothered, and Chief Minister Yeddyurappa is on a mission to save his chair yet again. Vicky Nanjappa revisits Lokayukta's first report that came out in April 2010, and dealt with the pathetic living conditions in Bellary.
Putting an end to speculations on Saturday, Justice Hegde told rediff.com, "It is one of the most ridiculous rumours I have ever heard. On the one hand, I have been accused of being the one responsible for B S Yeddyurappa stepping down as chief minister because of my mining report. Now Yeddyurappa has rejoined the BJP and immediately the news floats that I too would be joining the same party. Does this not sound funny to you?
Contrary to what has been said a couple of weeks back, the Karnataka government has written to the Lokayukta that it is on course to initiate action based on the report on illegal mining.
Karnataka Governor H R Bhardwaj said on Wednesday that he is not asking the Lokayukta Justice Santosh Hegde, to submit to him his final report on illegal mining in the State.
The Bharatiya Janata Party leadership tried to influence Karnataka Lokayukta Justice Santosh Hegde against mentioning Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa's name in the mining report that is all set to be released in July. "I was told by BJP leader Dhananjay Kumar (former Union minister from Mangalore) to go soft on Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa while preparing the report on illegal mining," said Justice Hegde.
Lokayukta Justice Santosh Hegde, the ombudsman battling corruption in Karnataka is impressed with the manner in which Anna Hazare has taken on the government this time. Here are a few excerpts from a freewheeling chat with Vicky Nanjappa:
Vicky Nanjappa goes through Karnataka Lokayukta Justice Santosh Hegde's explosive report on illegal mining in the state and reveals damning figures of corruption.
Karnataka Lokayukta Justice N Santosh Hegde on Saturday issued a notice to Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa on a complaint against him about denotification of lands. Earlier on Saturday, the Lokayukta expressed regret over his decision to withdraw his resignation over the government's inaction about the massive corruption in the state. While addressing the media at Bengaluru on Saturday, Justice Hegde said that he cannot now undo what has been done and he cannot resign again.
Home Minister P Chidambaram on Friday requested Justice N Santosh Hegde, who resigned from the post of Lokayukta of Karnataka on June 23 over the manner in which the government had treated some of his reports, to reconsider his decision.
The stand-off between Karnataka government and Lokayukta Justice N Santosh Hegde over the legality of ordering a judicial probe into land scams showed no sign of abating with the Ombudsman questioning the former's contention.
Karnataka Lokayukta Justice N Santosh Hegde on Friday dismissed as 'totally wrong' reports that he has named External Affairs Minister S M Krishna in his report on illegal mining in the state.
The Karnataka high court on Monday directed former chief minister B S Yeddyurappa to place before it the report prepared by Dr U V Singh, the state's chief conservator of forests, on the basis of which the Lokayukta report had been prepared.
The Congress on Thursday demanded a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation probe into the mining scam exposed by the Lokayukta report, charging the Bharatiya Janata Party government of trying to shield the guilty. Seeking to move an adjournment motion in the Legislative Assembly, Leader of Opposition Siddaramaiah (Congress), said the (then) Lokayukta, Justice Santosh Hegde submitted his interim report on illegal mining in December 2008.
Governor H R Bhardwaj has cleared the name of Patil, who had earlier served as Chief Justice of Rajasthan High Court as well as Acting Chairman of the National Human Rights Commission, Raj Bhavan sources said.
Ahead of the crucial Lokayukta report on illegal mining in Karnataka which will be submitted before the chief secretary on Wednesday morning, Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa has sought the intervention of the Gods.
Karnataka Lokayukta Justice Santosh Hegde's report on illegal mining in the state is expected to be submitted any time now. Going by the 'leaks' from the Lokayukta's office, the report implicates around 600 figures, including Chief Minister BS Yeddyurappa.
Expressing doubts over the state government implementing his report on the mining scam in Karnataka, state Lokayukta Justice N Santosh Hegde on Saturday said his only hope was the Supreme Court.
Amid intense speculation on the fate of the indicted Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa, Karnataka Lokayukta Justice N Santosh Hegde will submit his report on mining scam to the State government on Wednesday.
The report on illegal mining by Karnataka Lokayukta Justice Santosh Hegde has stepped up the heat on big wigs in the state including Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa.
The Karnataka Lokayukta's report on illegal mining in the state is said to have named Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappaa, former chief minister H D Kumaraswamy, the Reddy brothers among others.
Seeking further probe into the issue of illegal mining following the report by Karnataka Lokayukta Justice Santosh Hegde, an interlocutory application has been filed before the Supreme Court.
Former Karnataka Lokayukta Justice N Santosh Hegde on Wednesday suggested that corporates and NGOs should also be brought under the purview of the Jan Lokpal bill.
Karnataka Lokayukta Justice Santosh N Hegde, who is probing illegal mining in the state, on Thursday claimed that his phone has been tapped. Hegde, a former Supreme Court judge, told PTI that after reports of alleged bugging in the office of Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee surfaced, he had asked a professional to carry out a check in his office. "(The professional) told me that my telephone has been tapped. Every conversation was being recorded," he said.
Lokayutka of Karnataka Justice Santosh Hegde said that the proposal made by Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa to give suo motu powers to the Lokayukta to investigate all public servants except the chief minister, ministers, legislators and public servants nominated by the government, neither makes him happy nor sad.
On Wednesday, senior Bharatiya Janata Party leaders Arun Jaitley and Rajnath Singh were in Bengaluru to oversee a special secret ballot election process within BJP MLAs from Karnataka to choose the next chief minister. The two candidates were D V Sadananda Gowda and Jagdish Shettar.
The Bharatiya Janata Party high command, meanwhile, has indicated that it could accept Yeddyurappa's option of setting up an internal committee to look into the allegations against the CM and his sons. This would give the BJP time.
The rampant mining in Karnataka and the politicians who minted money from it made headlines during the state election in 2008. But this year, the issue has taken a backseat and mining barons like Janardhana Reddy have been kept away from the electoral fray.