'Prisoner on Transit' warrant against Janardhana Reddy

Bellary/Hyderabad: A Karnataka court has issued ‘Prisoner on Transit’ warrant against mining baron G Janardhan Reddy, an accused in the Obulapuram Mining Company mining scam, to produce him before a special CBI court by 2 March, in connection with another “illegal” mining case registered against him in that state, officials said today. [caption id=“attachment_228804” align=“alignleft” width=“380” caption=“The Reddy brothers. G Janardhana Reddy (Centre) Screen grab from CNN IBN.”]  [/caption] Reddy, the former Karnataka Tourism Minister, is currently under judicial remand and lodged in the Chanchalguda Central Prison here along with brother-in-law BV Srinivas Reddy since 5 September after being arrested by the CBI in connection with “illegal” mining case involving OMC owned by him. A senior jail official confirmed that the warrant directions were only with regard to production of Janardhan Reddy before the court in Bangalore by 2 March. “We have received the warrant copy from the escort party yesterday and Reddy, who is on judicial remand in Chanchalguda Jail here will be soon handed over to the escort party,” the jail official said. The CBI filed its charge sheet against the Reddys and three others last December after accusing them of creating forged documents in collusion with public servants and alleged the mining and extraction of 29.30 lakh tonne of iron-ore was done in several areas (in Karnataka) other than the leased area of 68.5 hectares held by OMC in Anantapur district of Andhra Pradesh. Sources in Bellary said CBI has moved an application before its designated court in Hyderbad seeking custody of Reddy in connection with its ongoing probe into illegal mining by Associated Mining Company (AMC). The CBI in Karnataka has already filed FIR against 21 people including Reddy, his wife Aruna, former minister and Congress leader V Muniyappa and others in connection with illegal mining activity by AMC, owned by Reddy and his wife Aruna. OMC is accused of changing mining lease boundary markings between AP and Karnataka and indulging in illegal mining in the Bellary Reserve Forest Area, spread between Bellary and Anantapur districts. The CBI had registered a case against OMC on 7 December 2009 in the wake of allegations of illegal mining and irregularities in allotment of mining leases in Obulapuram and Malapanagudi villages of Anantapur. The CBI is also probing the “link” between mining activities in Bellary and Anantapur involving the Reddy brothers after a directive to the central agency from Supreme Court in September last year. PTI