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 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.
The Central Bureau of Investigation on Monday searched offices of two companies, including one owned by the wife of arrested mining baron and former minister G Janardhana Reddy, and also the residence of his close associate B Nagendra.
Expressing shock at the magnitude of the alleged illegal export of 35 lakh metric tons of iron ore by private firms in Karnataka, the Supreme Court on Thursday said it wants to explore the possibility if the guilty could be punished within six months.
The Karnataka high court on Wednesday adjourned hearing on a petition filed by External Affairs Minister S M Krishna. Justice B V Pinto is likely to take up the matter for hearing on Thursday.
In a significant move forward in the probe against illegal mining by former Karnataka Tourism Minister Gali Janardhan Reddy, the Central Bureau of Investigation has started the questioning the YSR Congress President and member of Lok Sabha YS Jaganmohan Reddy on Friday.
Claiming that over three crore tons of iron ore worth over Rs 12,000 crore was illegally shifted out of the country since 2003, Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa said on Monday that he will quit if he failed to put an end to plundering of the natural resources in the state.
The Karnataka high court will hear on Tuesday the petition filed by Union External Affairs Minister S M Krishna challenging the proceedings against him in the illegal mining case. The matter is expected to be come up in the morning session and will be heard by Justice B V Pinto, the same judge who heard the bail plea filed by B S Yeddyurappa.
A special CBI court in Hyderabad convicted former Karnataka minister and MLA Gali Janardhana Reddy and three others in the Obulapuram Mining Company (OMC) illegal iron ore mining case after a prolonged trial spanning nearly 14 years. The court sentenced them to seven years' imprisonment and imposed a fine of Rs 10,000 on each. Reddy was named accused number two. The court imposed a Rs 1 lakh fine on the company. The CBI took Reddy and others into custody soon after the judgment.
The Central Bureau of Investigation, which is probing the massive scam of alleged illegal iron ore mining by former Karnataka minister Gali Janardhan Reddy's company in Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka, has questioned Andhra Pradesh Home Minister P Sabita Indra Reddy in connection with the case. The minister was questioned about her role in the decision to grant a lease to Reddy's Obulapuram Mining Company for mining in Anantapur district when she was the minister for mines.
Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah dismisses speculation of a power struggle within the Congress party and addresses concerns regarding the Hate Speech Bill.
In more trouble for jailed former Karnataka minister and mining baron G Janardhana Reddy, the Supreme Court on Friday wanted Central Bureau of Investigation to probe the "linkage" between mining activities in Karnataka's Bellary district and Ananthpur in Andhra Pradesh allegedly involving the Reddy brothers.
The launch of a new party by former Karnataka minister and mining baron G Janardhana Reddy has spiced up the poll scene in parts of state.
In the midst of opposition protests in Karnataka over the illegal mining issue, Governor H R Bharadwaj on Tuesday met President Pratibha Patil.
The Karnataka legislative assembly is in disarray and the Opposition has refused to let proceedings begin until the chief minister orders a CBI probe into the illegal mining. Rediff.com's Vicky Nanjappa explains the issue.
A special court in Bengaluru has sentenced Congress MLA Sateesh Krishna Sail to seven years imprisonment and imposed hefty fines for theft and illegal export of seized iron ore from Belekeri port during 2009-10.
Rediff.com brings you some explosive extracts from the 400-page report that has triggered a political tsunami.
In the second part of this two-part series, we take a close look at this poison, which spread across small mining towns of Karnataka, unchecked and unbridled, before it was brought to a grinding halt last year
'BJP was always there in my blood, but due to some reasons I had gone out, but today I feel I have come back to my mother's lap. Looking at my brothers here, I don't feel like I'm coming back to the BJP office after 13 years'
Deadlock in Karnataka over the mining issue continued for the second day with Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa failing to convince the Opposition to let the proceedings go on smoothly.
Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh in the south, and Rajasthan and Gujarat in the west, are the country's top producers of limestone
Karnataka has been quiet for a while since political tempers have temporarily stopped flying around. However, what everyone is waiting for with a bated breath is the release of the second report on illegal mining, which many have termed as a block buster.
In a setback to mining magnate and former Karnataka minister Janardhana Reddy, the Central Bureau of Investigation court has rejected his bail plea and handed over his custody to the CBI until September 19.
The Karnataka government would 'fully cooperate' with the Central Bureau of Investigation probe into the illegal extraction of 50.7 lakh metric tonnes of iron ore in 17 months from the state's forests, Chief Minister Jagadish Shettar said on Sunday.
'Let anyone in Karnataka come forward and show that we have the licences to even a single square foot of land in the state,' challenges C V Nagesh, the Reddy brothers's lawyer.
With barely a day to go before the much-hyped Lokyukta report on illegal mining, Karnataka has erupted into a hotbed of activity. While Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa's rivals are plotting his removal in the wake of his name appearing in the report, the man himself is holding his chair very tight.
Central Bureau of Investigation on Thursday opposed the bail pleas of former Karnataka minister Gali Janardhana Reddy and his brother-in-law B V Srinivas Reddy, arrested in connection with alleged illegal mining activities, at a special court contending that the duo carried out "illegal" mining by creating forged documents and through conspiracy.
Karnataka Lokayukta Police on Tuesday raided the premises of former minister and mining baron Janardhan Reddy in Bellary for alleged illegal mining and possession of disproportionate assets.
Vicky Nanjappa digs deep into the Lokayukta report to find that all rules in the book are being openly flouted by the mining lobby in Bellary.
Renewing his attack on the Bharatiya Janata Party government in Karnataka, Governor H R Bhardwaj on Friday charged it with having 'failed' to check illegal mining and demanded that Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa reply to his recent letters on illegal mining and alleged land scams. "Illegal mining is still continuing. No action is taken by the government here," said Bhardwaj, who wrote to Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa two days ago seeking a report on the issue.
Blood And Iron is veteran journalist Paranjoy Guha Thakurta's painstaking effort at documenting the mining scams that erupted in south India this year.
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.
Karnataka's mining baron, Janardhan Reddy is in trouble. The chargesheet filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation has suggested that Reddy earned Rs 4,300 crore through illegal mining.
Amid tight security, former Karnataka tourism Minister and mining baron G Janardhana Reddy was on Friday produced before a special Central Bureau of Investigation court in Bengaluru which remanded him to CBI custody till March 12 in connection with an illegal mining case.
Several developments in the Supreme Court over illegal mining of iron ore in Karnataka indicate that only the first chapter of a long-running story has been brought to a satisfactory end. The whole story offers a valuable insight into practices of governance and ways of doing business in India.
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.
A special CBI court in Hyderabad on Monday dismissed the bail plea of mining baron and former Karnataka Minister Gali Janardhan Reddy, an accused in the illegal mining case involving his Obulapuram Mining Company.
With the Karnataka high court refusing relief to S M Krishna on an alleged illegal mining scam during his chief ministership, the Bharatiya Janata Party on Friday asked the Congress to show the door to the external affairs minister, as it had done to former Karnataka chief minister B S Yeddyurappa in the wake of the Lokayukta report indicting the state government. "Krishna holds the sensitive portfolio of external affairs.
Ninety percent mining in Bellary district of Karnataka is illegal which has converted the area of green scenic into a war ravaged zone with huge ugly scars, says the Supreme Court-appointed committee.
Karnataka minister for tourism and mining magnate Janardhan Reddy has decided to hang his boots as an industrialist for good.
