BENGALURU: Hitting back at the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for approaching court, alleging that the state government sat for four months on its representation seeking consent for attachment of properties worth Rs 19 crore, belonging to former minister G Janardhan Reddy and his family, the Karnataka government on Thursday placed an order before court granting consent.
The state said the CBI had not acted till today on the nod given seven years ago for attachment of properties worth Rs 65 crore, acquired by the Reddy family from the proceeds of illegal mining.
Noting that the state government has placed on record the order passed granting approval for attachment of properties, Justice M Nagaprasanna directed the CBI to pursue the matter and take it to its logical end, and not into deep slumber as done on the consent given seven years ago.
Expressing shock over the seven-year delay on the part of CBI in acting on the first permission granted in 2015, the court said the observations made upon the state government on the last date of hearing would be expunged.
Placing the order granting the nod for attachment of properties, Additional Advocate-General Dhyan Chinnappa submitted that averments made against the state government are contrary to the record and unwarranted, as the CBI did not pursue the matter for seven years and was now passing the buck to the state, alleging the state was shielding the accused.
The application filed for attachment of properties was not even numbered till 2022, but CBI moved court, alleging that Reddy was making hectic efforts to sell properties worth Rs 19 crore. “What was CBI doing for the past seven years? That goes to show the CBI did not act,” he argued. The CBI moved court, seeking a nod to approach the special court for attachment of Reddy’s properties in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.