BANGALORE: Citing personal reasons Udaya Holla, Advocate General (AG), Karnataka resigned on Monday. Governor Rameshwar Thakur, has accepted the resignation with immediate effect. Holla had served as the Advocate General for the past three years. Sources close to the AG said that he decided to step down after the state government did not show confidence in him in a few major cases in the recent past.
Speaking to The New Indian Express, Holla said, “I had served in the post for the last three years. I have resigned for personal reasons and there were no other reasons for my quitting”.
“I have decided to concentrate on my private practice and wish to set up a separate office”, Holla added.
However, sources said that the recent decisions of the state government had embarrassed the AG, which may have lead to his resignation.
Recently the government had created a new post of the Additional Advocate General and appointed Ashok Harnahalli.
However, before appointing the AAG, the government had not consulted Holla, sources said.
Another reason for Holla’s disappointment is that the government had appointed special counsels to defend few key and sensitive cases in the High Court.
The Government had appointed senior counsel Basavaprabhu Patil as special counsel to defend the KMF case.
Similarly, the government had appointed senior counsel B G Aharaya to defend its decision on transfer of Gokarna temple to the Ramachadrapura Mutt and it had entrusted the new AAG with the NICE case in the High Court.
Sources said that these decisions of the government had reportedly hurt and embarrassed Holla.
“Though he had successfully defended the state in the Cauvery water disputes before the Tribunal and the Supreme Court, some of his opinions and advice were not being considered by the state government,” the sources said.
Holla was appointed as the AG in May 2006 during H D Kumaraswamy's term as CM and was later re-appointed by the B S Yeddyurappa government.