Smart power meter tender scam allegation: HC stays special court order seeking lokayukta report
Bengaluru: The Karnataka High Court on Wednesday granted an interim stay on a Special Court’s directive asking the Lokayukta Police to submit a report in connection with a private complaint filed against Energy Minister K.J. George and others, alleging irregularities in the tender process for smart electricity meters in the state.
The complaint, filed by BJP leaders including MLAs Dr. C.N. Ashwath Narayan, S.R. Vishwanath, and Dheeraj Muniraju, accused the state government of unlawfully awarding a ₹16,000 crore smart meter installation contract. They claimed the tender process violated transparency norms under the Karnataka Transparency in Public Procurement (KTPP) Act and the Karnataka Electricity Regulatory Commission (KERC) rules.
Justice M.I. Arun, heading a single-judge bench, passed the interim order while hearing a criminal petition filed by Minister K.J. George seeking to quash the private complaint. The High Court also issued notices to the Lokayukta, BJP leaders C.N. Ashwath Narayan, S.R. Vishwanath, and Dheeraj Muniraju, asking them to file objections. The next hearing has been scheduled for August 20.
Arguments in Court:
Senior advocate C.V. Nagesh, representing K.J. George, argued that public servants, including the minister, are protected under Section 17A of the Prevention of Corruption (PC) Act, which bars any inquiry or investigation without prior sanction from the competent authority. He contended that the Special Court’s order seeking a report from the Lokayukta Police Superintendent was without jurisdiction and bypassed mandatory procedures.
On the other hand, senior advocate Lakshmi Iyengar, appearing for the BJP complainants, argued that the order only instructed the Lokayukta Police to file a preliminary report, which is permissible at this stage and part of the initial procedure. Hence, she argued, the High Court should not stay the directive.
Background of the Case:
The controversy stems from a tender floated on September 26, 2024, to procure and install smart electricity meters. The BJP leaders alleged that the tender was illegally awarded to Davangere-based Rajashree Electricals, a shell company, without inviting separate tenders for different electricity supply companies across the state. Instead, the entire tender process was routed through BESCOM (Bangalore Electricity Supply Company), raising suspicions of favoritism and corruption.
The private complaint named Energy Minister K.J. George, Additional Chief Secretary Gaurav Gupta, former BESCOM MD Mahantesh Bilagi, and Technical Director H.J. Ramesh as accused. The Special Court for People’s Representatives had on July 23 directed the Lokayukta Police Superintendent to submit a report, prompting Minister George to challenge the order in the High Court.
The High Court’s interim stay has now put a temporary pause on the Lokayukta’s probe, at least until the next hearing on August 20.
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'Homebound' makes it to Oscar shortlist for best international feature
Mumbai (PTI): Neeraj Ghaywan's much acclaimed "Homebound" is among the 15 films shortlisted in the best international feature category at the Oscars, moving a step close to the final five nominations and maybe a win.
The movie, inspired by a true story that became the basis of a news article during the pandemic, has been creating a global buzz since its debut in the Un Certain Regard category at the Cannes Film Festival this May.
Hollywood legend Martin Scorsese is a fan and has come onboard as an executive producer ahead of the award season.
Produced by Karan Johar and Adar Poonawalla, and starring Ishaan Khatter, Vishal Jethwa and Janhvi Kapoor, "Homebound" is Ghaywan's second movie after "Masaan".
"Homebound" will compete for an Oscar nomination alongside Argentina's “Belén”, Brazil's “The Secret Agent”, French drama "It Was Just an Accident”, Germany's "Sound of Falling” and Iraq's "The President's Cake".
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The other movies in the shortlist include Japan's “Kokuho”, Jordan's “All That’s Left of You”, Norway's “Sentimental Value”, Palestine's “Palestine 36”, South Korean hit “No Other Choice”, Spain's “Sirat”, "Late Shift" from Switzerland, “Left-Handed Girl”from Taiwan and Tunisian drama “The Voice of Hind Rajab”, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced in a release on Tuesday.
The award for best foreign film, now re-categorised as best international feature, has so far eluded India.
Only three Indian films have received nominations in the category -- Mehmood Khan’s “Mother India”, Mira Nair’s “Salaam Bombay” and Ashutosh Gowarikar’s “Lagaan”. Deepa Mehta’s “Water”, starring John Abraham and Lisa Ray, also received a nomination but it was submitted from Canada.
Gujarati film "Chhello Show" in 2023 was the last film to get shortlisted.
Costume designer Bhanu Athaiya was the first Indian to get an Oscar, bagging the coveted prize in 1983 for the film "Gandhi". Other than her, A R Rahman, Resul Pukootty and M M Keeravani have also won individual Oscars.
Team "Homebound" celebrated the shortlist news with posts on social media.
"We made the shortlist... Way to go team Homebound'!" Johar shared in Instagram Stories.
In a post, the producer said it was difficult for him to articulate how "proud and elated" he was with the news.
"All of us @dharmamovies are privileged to have this proud and important film in our filmography... thank you @neeraj.ghaywan for making so many dreams of ours come true... from Cannes to being on the Oscar shortlist this has been such an overwhelming journey! Love to the entire cast and crew and teams of this special special film! Upwards and onwards...."
Ghaywan also shared the news on X.
"#Homebound has been shortlisted for Best International Feature Film at the 98th Academy Awards! We are deeply grateful for the extraordinary love and support we've received from around the world," he wrote on X with a special poster of the film.
Jethwa, who plays one of the two friends in the story opposite Ishaan Khatter, said the moment feels "surreal and incredibly humbling".
"To see 'Homebound' being shortlisted and progressing towards the Oscars is something I could have only dreamed of. I am deeply grateful for the love and support the film has received from audiences around the world," he said as he acknowledged Johar, Ghaywan and co-star Khatter and the rest of the team.
Khatter also shared the news on his Instagram stories and wrote, "Oscar ab dur nahi".
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"Homebound" is inspired by journalist Basharat Peer's The New York Times article “Taking Amrit Home”, also titled "A Friendship, a Pandemic and a Death Beside the Highway".
The film portrays the childhood friendship between a Muslim and Dalit who chase a police job that promises them the dignity they have long been denied due to their surnames.
The Academy on Tuesday also announced shortlists in 11 other categories, including the newly added casting Oscars, animated shorts, cinematography, documentary feature, documentary short, original score and song, sound and visual effects categories.
Nominations for the 98th Academy Awards will be announced on Thursday, January 22, 2026.
Twenty-four categories will be awarded at the 98th Oscars. Each category has five nominees, except for best picture, which has 10.
The 98th Oscars will be held on Sunday, March 15, 2026, at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles.
