Chief Minister moves challenges court over land scams

Going back on his public proclamation that he would not judicially challenge the permission given by governor HR Bhardwaj to prosecute him, chief minister BS Yeddyurappa filed a writ petition in the high court.

The move comes in the wake of the high court reserving judgment on a petition filed by the chief minister’s son-in-law, Sohan Kumar, challenging the proceedings in a Lokayukta court over the alleged land scams.

In a petition filed by his counsel Sandeep Patil, Yeddyurappa alleged that the governor’s sanction to prosecute him, based on petitions by two advocates, revealed “bias, non-application of mind and constitutional impropriety”.

The chief minister contended that the sanction by the governor was bad in law, and the governor had been acting in a biased manner. 

He said that the governor had written to the him asking for the resignation of then prisons minister Umesh Katti on an issue relating to releasing prisoners on Independence Day.
The petition is likely to come up for hearing on Friday.

On January 21, Bhardwaj granted sanction to prosecute Yeddyurappa and others on the petitions by Sirajin Basha and KN Balraj over alleged land scams.

Armed with the governors sanction, the two lawyers had filed complaints against Yeddyurappa and some of his family members, including son-in-law Sohan Kumar, in the Lokayukta court. However, on a petition filed by Kumar, the high court had on March 29 and April 1 stayed the proceedings in the Lokayukta court.