The Karnataka High Court on Thursday granted anticipatory bail to the fomer Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy and his MLA wife Anita, who had apprehended arrest in two corruption cases filed against them in the Special Lokayukta Court in Bangalore.
Justice L Narayanaswamy said that both the petitions were allowed and it pronounced the order providing legal relief to the JD(S) leader against whom the Lokayukta Court had issued summons.
The Lokayukta Court on Wednesday posted the case to tomorrow for hearing pending the High Court order and as per the order the two were granted exemption from personal appearance on August 30 and September 5 on health grounds.
The case was related to a private complaint filed by an advocate, Vinod Kumar alleging that Kumaraswamy had favoured a mining company during his tenure as Chief Minister in 2006-07 by renewing the licence and also by issuing permits for lifting iron ore.
The complaint also charged Kumaraswamy with allowing bulk allotment of sites to a housing society and, as a quid pro quo, it had granted a site to his wife.
Counsel for Kumaraswamy, a Lok Sabha member and JD (S) state Union President and his wife submitted on Wednesday that the trial court Judge had issued summons without holding an enquiry. The bulk allotment was in accordance with the order and that there was nothing to show that he had accepted illegal gratification, he had argued.
The counsel contended that Anita was a member of the Housing society before her husband became Chief Minister and had also surrendered that the site was not as per the 'vastu'.
Vinod Kumar had alleged that Kumaraswamy indulged in favouritism and exrted pressure on the then Commissioner of Mines and Geology to pass an order in favour of the mining company Janathakal Enterprises and that there was illegal gratification vis-à-vis the bulk allotment.
News Reported by AR for newsvision
