SC dismisses CBI's plea against stay on probe against Dy CM D K Shivakumar in graft case
New Delhi, Ju (PTI): The Supreme Court on Monday refused to interfere with the Karnataka High Court's order granting an interim stay on a CBI probe against the state's Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar in a corruption case.
A bench of Justice B R Gavai, Justice C T Ravikumar and Justice Sanjay Kumar dismissed the appeal filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation against the February 10 order of the high court in the case.
Additional Solicitor General SV Raju said that the division bench of the high court granted an interim stay on the proceedings despite there being an order in favour of the agency.
Senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi, appearing for Shivakumar, said the CBI has filed an appeal against an interim order of the high court but refused to challenge subsequent interim orders passed by the division bench of the high court.
The Supreme Court bench then said it is not going to interfere and granted the CBI liberty to request the high court for speedy disposal of the case before it.
On February 10, the Karnataka High Court stayed CBI proceedings in a corruption case against Shivakumar. The HC has also directed the probe agency to submit an action-taken report in the case registered under the Prevention of Corruption Act.
The high court pointed out that the cases registered against Shivakumar were of 2020 and also questioned the CBI on the progress of the investigation over the last two years. The high court had asked the agency when would it file the final report as it stayed the proceedings till the next date of hearing and adjourned the case.
The Income Tax Department raided Shivakumar in 2017. Based on the information provided by the I-T department, the Enforcement Directorate too started its probe against him.
Based on the ED investigation, the CBI sought sanction from the state government to file an FIR against the Congress' Karnataka unit president. The sanction came on September 25, 2019, and the FIR was filed on October 3, 2020. Shivakumar has challenged the FIR in the High Court.
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Another North Goa nightclub sealed; Kejriwal says corruption led to fire tragedy
Panaji (PTI): As part of a crackdown against tourist establishments violating laws and safety norms in the aftermath of the Arpora fire tragedy, Goa authorities on Saturday sealed a renowned club at Vagator and revoked the fire department NOC of another club.
Cafe CO2 Goa, located on a cliff overlooking the Arabian Sea at Vagator beach in North Goa, was sealed. The move came two days after Goya Club, also in Vagator, was shut down for alleged violations of rules.
Elsewhere, campaigning for local body polls, AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal said the fire incident at Birch by Romeo Lane nightclub at Arpora, which claimed 25 lives on December 6, happened because the BJP government in the state was corrupt.
An inspection of Cafe CO2 Goa by a state government-appointed team revealed that the establishment, with a seating capacity of 250, did not possess a no-objection certificate (NOC) of the Fire and Emergency Services Department. The club, which sits atop Ozrant Cliff, also did not have structural stability, the team found.
The Fire and Emergency Services on Saturday also revoked the NOC issued to Diaz Pool Club and Bar at Anjuna as the fire extinguishers installed in the establishment were found to be inadequate, said divisional fire officer Shripad Gawas.
A notice was issued to Nitin Wadhwa, the partner of the club, he said in the order.
Campaigning at Chimbel village near Panaji in support of his party's Zilla Panchayat election candidate, Aam Aadmi Party leader Kejriwal said the nightclub fire at Arpora happened because of the "corruption of the Pramod Sawant-led state government."
"Why this fire incident happened? I read in the newspapers that the nightclub had no occupancy certificate, no building licence, no excise licence, no construction licence or trade licence. The entire club was illegal but still it was going on," he said.
"How could it go on? Couldn't Pramod Sawant or anyone else see it? I was told that hafta (bribe) was being paid," the former Delhi chief minister said.
A person can not work without bribing officials in the coastal state, Kejriwal said, alleging that officers, MLAs and even ministers are accepting bribes.
