Land allotment issue: Bhardwaj slams Yeddyurappa on judicial probe

NEW DELHI/BANGALORE: After the Lokayukta, it was the turn of Karnataka Governor HR Bhardwaj to unleash an attack on Chief Minister BS Yeddyurappa over ordering a judicial probe into the allegations of favouritism in allotment of government land.

Bhardwaj, who came close to suggesting that judicial probe was part of a cover-up effort, said the police alone can investigate the offence. “The only forum competent to investigate offences is police. Nobody else has the power.

Lokayukta has a police, the government has a police. Wherever there is a crime, it may be investigated by the police,” he told reporters while citing a Supreme Court ruling about the judicial probe, on the sidelines of a function in Bangalore.

On the dual probe into the land scam and denotification, he said, “This confusion is being created deliberately.” He also pointed out that the Lokayukta was investigating the issue. “It will unearth the truth. I have no further comments on the issue,” he was quoted by news agencies as saying.

Though the governor refused to comment on the resignation of state housing minister Katta Subramanya Naidu over the land scam issue, he said, “Ministers are also not listening to my advice. When I raised the illegal mining issue, there was criticism that I was misusing my position. I will leave it to people to judge.” He said he was watching all the developments and sending the report to the president as per law.

Troubles are clearly not over for Yeddyurappa, who had recently survived a crisis because of the BJP’s political compulsions to retain the Lingayat leader in the state.

Under pressure from within the party and from opponents, Yeddyurappa had ordered a judicial probe, headed by a retired High Court judge, into the land scam allegations earlier this month. Lokatyukta Santosh Hegde had rejected the state government’s contention that a judicial probe into land scams was valid as it was ordered earlier.

The ombudsman had said the probe cannot be held as the Lokayukta is already probing some scams which come under the judicial commission for enquiry. He also said the state government had not taken his permission, which is required under certain provisions of Lokayukta Act before issuing the notification.

He had said that while the government took a decision on November 18 to order a judicial inquiry, the JD-S lodged complaint with Lokayukta that day itself.