Gujarat Governor Kamla Beniwal, who had frosty relations with Narendra Modi when he was chief minister of the state, was tonight sent off to Mizoram in a reshuffle of governors effected by the government.
'Is this building a legally valid building? In this, there are no rules. It is built in violation of rules, against the law and built with corruption'
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.
Both Houses of Parliament were adjourned sine die on Wednesday, bringing the Winter Session to a close two days ahead of schedule
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.
Retired Karnataka High Court Judge S B Majage was sworn as the state's Upalokayukta at a brief ceremony at the Raj Bhavan in Bengaluru. The Upalokayukta post had been lying vacant for seven months.
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.
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
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.
Karnataka Lokayukta Justice N Santhosh Hegde, whose resignation was rejected by Governor H R Bhardwaj on Thursday, has refused to reconsider his decision.Speaking about his telephonic conversation with Home Minister P Chidambaram, Justice Hegde said it was merely a courtesy call. "He has every right to call me since we have been friends since the past 40 years. He was obviously taken aback by my decision to quit so suddenly," he said.
The Department of Personnel and Training has expedited efforts to select seven members and chairperson of the Search Committee for Lokpal, official sources said.
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.
Delhi's new government, headed by Arvind Kejriwal, on Thursday directed its anti-corruption branch to lodge an FIR in the Rs 90-crore street light project for the 2010 Commonwealth Games in which a panel headed by a former Comptroller and Auditor General had indicted the then chief minister Sheila Dikshit.
Aam Aadmi Party-led Delhi government is locked in a power struggle with the Centre and the Lt Governor. Kavita Chowdhury reports
After much delay, the landmark Lokpal Bill was on Tuesday passed by the Rajya Sabha, marking a step closer to enactment of a new law under which an anti-corruption ombudsman would be set up.
Union Minister of State for Environment and Forests Jairam Ramesh's recent statement that no economic activity, including illegal mining, would be allowed in forest areas has sounded alarm bells in Bellary.
'The Gogoi episode can lead to our evolving a rational way to get better people who will head our checks and balances of democracy,' says former Chief Information Commissioner Shailesh Gandhi.
Controversy shrouds the expansion of the Akhilesh Yadav ministry on Monday with a social activist throwing a spanner by challenging before Governor Ram Naik the possible re-entry of tainted former Mines Minister Gayatri Prajapati.
The Supreme Court on Monday sought response from the Centre on a petition filed by an NGO questioning the entire selection process for appointment of chairperson and members of the Lokpal and seeking its stay.
Modi lashed out at the Siddaramaiah government over alleged corruption, saying there is not a single minister who is not facing allegations of financial wrongdoing.
He said the "countdown has begun for Narendra Modi," citing the results of Rajasthan by-polls in which the ruling BJP faced an embarrassing defeat at the hands of the Congress which won two Lok Sabha seats and one assembly segment.
The Supreme Court on Friday agreed to interpret Leader of Opposition provision for the purpose of appointment of Lokpal in which LoP is a selection committee member and asked the Centre to make its stand clear within two weeks, saying the legislation cannot be put in "cold storage".
A bench comprising CJI and Justice Sanjiv Khanna was hearing a PIL filed by NGO Common Cause challenging the appointment of Rao as interim CBI director.
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?
The government and the opposition are heading for yet another faceoff over constitution of the selection panel for the maiden Lokpal, with the Bharatiya Janata Party opposing the prime minister's proposal to appoint senior lawyer P P Rao as its fifth member.
Congress President Sonia Gandhi on Sunday slammed Bharatiya Janata Party's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi for levelling "unfounded corruption charges" against her party and questioned as to why Lokayukta was not appointed in Gujarat for ten years.
The bench posted the matter for hearing on July 17.
The government has notified new Lokpal search committee rules, giving it more freedom to recommend names for chairperson and members of the anti-corruption body outside the list provided by the Department of Personnel and Training.
'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
The petition has sought laying down of specific mechanisms to ensure transparency in the process of appointment of CBI director.
The activist, Bhupendra Vira, who had been fighting against land mafia, unauthorised structures and encroachments in and around Kalina, was attacked on Saturday night.
Citing overlapping of functions, a parliamentary committee on Monday recommended integrating Central Vigilance Commission and anti-corruption wing of the Central Bureau of Investigation to work directly under the command and control of Lokpal to deal with corruption cases.
Justice Ghose, who retired from the Supreme Court in May 2017, is a member of the National Human Rights Commission.
Aam Aadmi Party leader Yogendra Yadav on Thursday made public a "note", jointly written with Prashant Bhushan, which he had sent to the party on March 17 claiming that they had proposed their resignation from all party posts conditional to acceptance of their demands.
The Bharatiya Janata Party has submitted a "chargesheet" to President Pranab Mukherjee demanding the ouster of Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh over graft allegations.
Bharatiya Janata Party leader Vijender Gupta has filed a complaint against Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit before a special court here seeking direction to police to register a first information report against her for allegedly misusing government funds to the tune of Rs 22.56 crore in an advertisement campaign ahead of the 2008 Assembly polls.
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."
Anna Hazare, fasting for the last five days for passage of Lokpal Bill, on Saturday said he was happy with the amended legislation presented in the Rajya Sabha and would call off his hunger strike the moment the law is enacted.
In a novel suggestion, A P J Abdul Kalam on Monday favoured that the post of President be brought under the purview of Lokpal.