Justice Santosh Hegde has become a very popular face at the protests against corruption at Freedom Park in Bengaluru.
Former Supreme Court judge N Santosh Hegde says a political party floated purely on the anti-corruption plank will not succeed in elections at this stage as money power and diversity play a role.
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.
"We propose to cover organisations like ISRO and arms deals under the purview of Jan Lokpal as they are important from internal security angle, besides the Prime Minister above all who will come under its jurisdiction," Karnataka Lokayukta N Santosh Hegde, part of the 10-member Joint Drafting Committee on Lokpal Bill, told media persons in Bengaluru.
The ongoing probe into illegal mining in Karnataka have revealed some startling facts, including the fact that transportation of ore has gone up two folds after the ban on it was imposed.
Justice Shivraj Patil will take over as the Lokayukta in Karnataka once Justice Santosh Hegde retires in August.Justice Patil, who belongs to the Lingayat community of Karnataka, was recently in the news when he was the appointed to probe the lapses in the sale of 2G spectrum by the telecom ministry. Justice Patil will take over as the top anti-corruption official of Karnataka at a crucial time, when the state government is trying to play down the report on illegal mining.
Illegal mining activities in Karnataka have wiped out 2,800 acres of forest land in the state, according to the probe report by Karnataka Lokayukta Justice N Santosh Hegde.
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.
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.
There is nothing wrong in bringing the prime minister under the jurisdiction of Lokpal as like others he is also a public servant, former Supreme Court Judge and erstwhile Karnataka Lokayukta N Santosh Hegde said on Wednesday.
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.
Vicky Nanjappa explores Justice Santosh Hegde's report on illegal mining in Karnataka and finds out a shocking case of abuse of power and guidelines in Bellary
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.
Documents reveal that out of the 80 odd mining leases in the Bellary region, at least 45 are raising contracts or mines run by third party.
Rediff.com's Vicky Nanjappa speaks to Karnataka Home Minister Dr V S Acharya, former minister and opposition Janata Dal-Secular minister M C Nanaiah, and state Lokayukta Justice Santosh Hegde to gauge the various conflicts that are complicating the ongoing political crisis in the state, and presents a comparative report.
The Bharatiya Janata Party in Karnataka is keeping matters close to its heart amid factions within the party warring over the post of the next chief minister.
The mining scam in Karnataka could easily be worth Rs 2,500 crore says Justice Santosh Hegde, the state's Lokayukta. An exclusive first person account to Rediff.com
'Justice is done, I stand vindicated...' Yeddyurappa tweeted.
'If tainted leaders come to power, they may tamper with the files and weaken the cases against them,' says former Lokayukta of Karnataka Santosh Hegde
"You can't meddle with patriotism. Everything is alright but patriotism can never be compromised," says retired Supreme Court judge N Santosh Hegde.
Karnataka BJP too said such a proposal is "neither the wish nor the will" of the party.
Following are the names of some high-profile people who have been put behind the bars
In a strong indictment of Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa, state Lokayukta Justice Santosh N Hegde on Thursday said he has given 'substantive' and 'voluminous' evidence against him in the illegal mining scam which has cost the state exchequer Rs 1800 crore in a period of 14 months.
Over a month at the helm, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Tuesday said he was working towards "visible changes" in administration and asked his ministers to be honest enough to have the "moral courage."
The 75-year-old Lingayat leader broke his own record of the most short-lived head of government in Karnataka.
Losing power after having come so close, Yediyurappa was determined to regain the reins of power from H D Kumaraswamy.
There seems to be no "closure" for B S Yediyurappa, the Bharatiya Janata Party's "comeback man" in Karnataka, as he could never complete a full term in office, despite becoming the chief minister four times, surmounting odds. It's also too early to write a political obituary of the 78-year old Lingayat strongman and the 24X7 politician, the face of the party in the state for decades.
Yeddyurappa has 15 days to prove his majority in the assembly.
'When a newspaper says that Karnataka leads in corruption, one must also know it means Karnataka leads in patronising corruption.' 'You can't be corrupt without me succumbing to your corruption.'
Yediyurappa said he would decide on members to be inducted into the ministry after consulting party president Amit Shah.
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