HC voids government order withdrawing 43 criminal cases, including Hubballi riots FIRs
Bengaluru (PTI): The Karnataka High Court on Thursday struck down a state government order that had instructed public prosecutors to withdraw 43 criminal cases, including those related to the 2022 Hubballi riots.
The court's verdict came in a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by advocate Girish Bharadwaj that challenged the order.
A Bench comprising Chief Justice N V Anjaria and Justice K V Aravind allowed the PIL, declaring the government’s directive invalid from the beginning.
“The government order is set aside. It shall be treated as non est from inception. Legal consequences will follow,” the Court said while pronouncing its verdict.
Delivering the judgment in what was his final sitting at the Karnataka High Court, Chief Justice Anjaria, who is slated for elevation to the Supreme Court, expressed gratitude to the legal fraternity.
“This is my last day on this dais. I thank all lawyers, court staff, and everyone who supported me. This is my final sitting, final pronouncement, and final order here,” he said emotionally before announcing the decision.
Advocate Venkatesh Dalwai, representing the petitioner, argued that the State Government had exceeded its authority by directing prosecutors to file applications under Section 321 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) to withdraw cases.
He emphasised that the decision to withdraw prosecutions lies solely with the public prosecutor, who must act independently and not at the behest of the executive.
Citing Supreme Court rulings, Dalwai argued that prosecutors are not mere intermediaries for government decisions and must evaluate each case on merit.
He further revealed that both the Law Department and the Prosecution and Government Litigation Department had advised against withdrawing the 43 cases—advice that was ignored by the Home Department, which issued the withdrawal order on October 15, 2024.
The cases selected for withdrawal involved serious offences including rioting, attempted murder, assault on police personnel, and destruction of public property.
Among them were cases arising from the Hubballi riots, which was triggered by a social media post.
Protesters allegedly vandalised a police station and hurled footwear at it during the agitation.
The petitioner also questioned the motivation behind the State’s move, pointing out that the cases marked for withdrawal involved politically influential individuals—including former ministers, MLAs, and office-bearers of powerful organizations. The PIL alleged that the list had been selectively curated to serve political ends.
“Criminal cases registered across Karnataka between 2008 and 2023 were reviewed, and 43 were handpicked for withdrawal. Many of these involved prominent political figures and influential activists, raising serious doubts about the impartiality of the exercise,” said the plea.
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Illegal sand mining has created environmental crisis in National Chambal Gharial Sanctuary: SC
New Delhi (PTI): The Supreme Court on Friday said rampant illegal riverbed sand mining has created an "environmental crisis" and wreaked "havoc" in the National Chambal Gharial Sanctuary, causing a grave risk to the gharial (long-snouted crocodile) preservation project.
Slamming the states of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh for their utter failure in dealing with the issue, the apex court directed them to install high-resolution Wi-Fi-enabled CCTV cameras along all routes frequently used for illegal sand mining in the area.
A bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta directed that live feed of such surveillance cameras shall be placed under the direct control, supervision and operational oversight of the superintendent of police or the senior superintendent of police of the concerned district and the divisional forest officer.
It said these officers shall ensure continuous and effective monitoring of the CCTV feeds by designating appropriate officers.
"It can't be gainsaid that the issues involved are of great concern in as much as the rampant illegal mining activities in the river bed have created an environmental crisis and havoc in the National Chambal Gharial Sanctuary causing a grave risk to the very project of gharial preservation of which the state governments themselves were proponents and were under an obligation to foster and promote," Justice Mehta said while pronouncing the order.
The bench directed the authorities in these three states to initiate prompt and necessary action under law if any instance of illegal mining or allied activities comes to light.
It said the authorities shall ensure seizure of vehicles or machinery found involved in illegal sand mining and also initiate prosecution of persons involved in it.
The bench, which passed several other directions, posted the matter for hearing on May 11.
The top court passed the order in a suo motu case titled 'In Re: Illegal sand mining in the National Chambal Sanctuary and threat to endangered aquatic wildlife'.
The National Chambal Sanctuary, also called the National Chambal Gharial Wildlife Sanctuary, is a 5,400-sq km tri-state protected area.
Besides the endangered gharial, it is home to the red-crowned roof turtle and the endangered Ganges river Dolphin.
Located on the Chambal river near the tripoint of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh, the sanctuary was first declared a protected area in Madhya Pradesh in 1978 and now constitutes a long and narrow eco-reserve co-administered by the three states.
On March 13, the top court took suo motu cognisance of news reports about rampant illegal sand mining on the banks of the Chambal river.
