After BSY,babus face action

Mining scam: Panel tells depts to take action against officers named in Lokayukta report.

After former chief minister B S Yeddyurappa,787 officials,including IAS and IFS officers,are in line to face action for their role in facilitating an illegal iron ore mining and export racket on the recommendations of the July 27 report of the Lokayukta.

A four-member committee set up by Chief Minister D V Sadananda Gowda has over the last week asked all state departments to identify and take action against the accused officers and to send details of IAS officers named in the report to the department of personnel and administrative reforms.

The list of people against whom action is to be taken is being sorted out. We should be in a position to give a report by September 20 on all the action taken on officials, said Additional Chief Secretary K Jairaj,who heads the panel. Former director of the department of mines and geology M E Shivalinga Murthy is likely to figure in the list.

Murthy is accused of approving mineral dispatch permits to Associated Mining Company,which was illegally taken over by then minister G Janardhan Reddy.

Among the IFS officers indicted by the Lokayukta is former deputy conservator of forests in Bellary S Muthaiah,who allegedly issued transport permits for iron ore from Associated Mining Company without collecting forest development taxes amounting to Rs 1.91 crore.

The bulk of the evidence on the connivance of government officials in the illegal iron ore mining and export racket in Karnataka comes from files documenting bribe payments to officials seized from the computers of key operatives in the syndicate by Income Tax and Lokayukta police authorities and incorporated in the report of the Lokayukta.

One of these key files was seized from the computer of an operative called Karapudi Mahesh from Bellary who maintained a log of bribes and protection or risk money paid to officials. Maheshs bank accounts also revealed that he made unaccounted payments the then Bellary in-charge minister G Janardhan Reddy identified in the logs as 8221;G J Reddy Sir.

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The documents seized from Mahesh record date wise payments made to 617 officials in 17 districts of Karnataka to allow the transportation of iron ore that was looted or grabbed in the Bellary district. According to the Lokayukta,an amount of Rs 2.46 crore was paid as bribes to 617 government officials by Mahesh for the year 2009-10 alone.

The Lokayukta in a chapter titled Collapse of administrative and governance systems has recommended action under the Prevention of Corruption Act 1988 against officials ranging from Superintendents of Police,Regional Transport Officers,forest officers,pollution control board officials,mining department personnel among others in 17 districts.

A second key record of bribe taking on the basis of which action has been suggested against government officials is a computer file recovered by the Lokayukta police from the office of Adani Enterprises who received iron ore consignments from Bellary at the Belikeri port.

The file detailed bribes amounting to Rs 2.65 crore paid year wise to customs,port,police,mining department officials and politicians between 2005 and 2008.