The petition has been posted to December 3 for orders over the admissibility of the case by the Lok Ayukta special court on Friday.
A complaint against the three former chief ministers—SM Krishna, N Dharam Singh and HD Kumaraswamy—and 11 bureaucrats, accusing them of abetting illegal mining in the state during their tenure, has been posted to December 3 for orders over the admissibility of the case by the Lok Ayukta special court on Friday.
The case came up for hearing before Justice NK Sudhindra Rao, who asked the complainant, TJ Abraham, a social worker and the president of Karnataka Anti-Graft and Environmental Forum, if there was any hidden agenda behind filing the complaint.
Abraham said he did not have an agenda. But when politicians were trying to diminish the sanctity of the report and violating the rule of law, one could not remain a silent spectator, he said.
The judge asked Abraham if his profession was linked to mining, to which he replied that his job of dealing with properties had no connection with mining.
The judge adjourned the petition for orders over its admissibility to Saturday.
Earlier, in his petition, the complainant had alleged that the state's mineral resources were looted when Krishna, Singh and Kumaraswamy were chief ministers, causing losses to the state exchequer. He sought a Lok Ayukta inquiry into the alleged loss of mineral sources during their tenure.
He said Krishna, who is now a member of Rajya Sabha, during his tenure as Karnataka's chief minister between October 11, 1999, and May 28, 2004, indulged in various acts of omission and commission of illegalities in relation to the grant of leases for mining in Karnataka.
He said Krishna illegally amassed wealth in the name of his family members, including his children and in-laws, and also in the names of his erstwhile close cabinet colleagues.
Regarding Kumaraswamy and Singh, he sought sanction for their prosecution by the speaker of the Lok Sabha as they are members of Parliament.
The interim report of the Lok Ayukta had indicted Singh and a former MD of government-owned Mysore Minerals Ltd, but the then governor Rameshwar Thakur had dropped action against them when the state was under the president's rule in 2007.
In his complaint, Abraham had named some bureaucrats, too, including IAS and IPS officials.
Abraham appealed to the Lok Ayukta court to take cognizance of the offences committed by them under the Prevention of Corruption Act and order an investigation.
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