Grant to mutt, land to trust: K'taka HC converts PIL into suo moto petition
Bengaluru, Oct 21: The Karnataka High Court has converted a public interest litigation into a suo moto PIL challenging the grant of Rs 5 crore by the state government to 'Ganiga Math' and eight acres of land to the 'Ganiga Samudaya Trust'.
Advocate Vidyulatha has been appointed as amicus curiae by the division bench of Chief Justice Prasanna B Varale and Justice Ashok N Kinagi.
The petition was filed by one N Hanumegowda who was directed by the court to hand over all the documents related to it to the amicus curiae within two weeks.
The HC has already issued notices to the Chief Secretary, Government of Karnataka; Deputy Commissioner, Bengaluru Urban, Revenue Department; and B J Puttaswamy, president of 'Vishwa Ganigara Samudaya Trust'.
Puttaswamy was the political secretary to then chief minister B S Yediyurappa when the Trust was sanctioned eight acres of land in Nagaruru village in Bengaluru North taluk in 2011. The same year, the state budget sanctioned Rs 5 crore for the 'Ganiga Gurupeeta'.
The petition alleged that Puttaswamy used his influence with the Chief Minister to get these two grants sanctioned.
Puttaswamy had filed a defamation case against Hanumegowda and the latter was convicted for it.
Since he had not disclosed this issue in his PIL, the HC had imposed a fine of Rs 25,000 on him in 2020.
On Friday, his advocate said the fine amount would be paid through cheque.
The court recorded this submission before turning the PIL into a suo moto PIL and appointing the amicus curiae to help the court.
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Hemant Karkare dying at hands of Kasab ‘Karmic Justice’: Shefali Vaidya on Col. Purohit’s promotion
Shefali Vaidya’s ‘karmic justice’ remark on Hemant Karkare sparks controversy.
Columnist Shefali Vaidya said that the death of former ATS chief Hemant Karkare was “almost karmic justice,” while expressing support for the promotion of Shrikant Purohit.
In the post, she wrote, “Col Purohit to be made Brigadier! This is the least Indian Army could do to restore the honour of an officer who was wrongly accused, framed on false charges, tortured beyond imagination and lost many years of his life thanks to anti-national, evil Congress.”
She further stated, “the way Maharashtra ATS Hemant Karkare died at the hands of Kasab was almost karmic justice, for having tortured Col Purohit, Sadhvi Pragya and others in the fake Hindu terror case. Ditto for disgraced cop Parambir Singh!”
Her post came after reports that Colonel Purohit, who was acquitted in the 2008 Malegaon blast case last year, has been approved for promotion to Brigadier.
Defence sources cited by Indian Express had indicated that less than a month after his retirement was put on hold by the Armed Forces Tribunal (AFT), he has been approved for promotion to Brigadier.
According to the report, he will now continue in service for at least two more years, up to the age of 56, which is the retirement age for Brigadiers, compared to 54 for Colonels.
Purohit had reportedly approached the AFT, stating that the 17-year-long trial had affected his career progression and denied him the opportunity to be considered for promotions.
Though he was granted bail in 2017, he remained under a Discipline and Vigilance (DV) ban, which was lifted in July 2020. Due to this, his promotion to the rank of Colonel was reportedly withheld in 2021.
The controversy around remarks on Karkare is not new.
Earlier, YouTuber Dhruv Rathee had highlighted instances of social media users allegedly making derogatory comments about the slain officer.
Hemant Karkare, a 1982-batch IPS officer, served as the chief of the Mumbai ATS and led the investigation into the 2008 Malegaon blasts. He was killed in action on November 26, 2008, during the 2008 Mumbai attacks while responding to terrorist activity near Cama Hospital. He was posthumously awarded the Ashoka Chakra in 2009.
According to the Mumbai Police chargesheet, Karkare, along with Additional Commissioner of Police Ashok Kamte and Inspector Vijay Salaskar, was killed in an exchange of fire with Pakistani terrorists, including Ajmal Amir Kasab and Abu Ismail Khan.
The officers were ambushed near Rang Bhavan Lane while moving towards Cama Hospital.
According to a report by India Today, BJP leader Pragya Singh Thakur had earlier claimed that Karkare died as a result of a “curse,” while Maharashtra Leader of Opposition Vijay Wadettiwar had alleged that an “RSS-linked cop” was responsible for Karkare’s death, citing claims from a book by S.M. Mushrif.
