On Tuesday, a special CBI Court in Hyderabad convicted Ex-Karnataka Minister & sitting MLA Gali Janardhana Reddy, along with three others, & sentenced them to seven years in prison in theObulapuram Mining Company (OMC) illegal mining case after a prolonged legal battle spanning nearly 14 years.
Reddy, along with his brother-in-law & OMC MD Srinivas Reddy, his assistant Mahfooz Ali Khan & the state’s then director of mines & geology Rajagopal Reddy, has also been fined ₹10,000 each. The company involved was fined ₹1 lakh. Soon after the judgment, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) took Reddy & others into custody.
On December 3, 2011, CBI filed a charge sheet against Reddy andothers, accusing them of tampering with mining lease boundary markings & carrying out mining illegally in Bellary Reserve Forest area on the Karnataka-Andhra Pradesh border. The prosecution claimed that the illegal mining between 2007 & 2009 caused ₹884 crore to the exchequer. During the course of the trial, the court examined over 3,400 documents & recorded depositions from 219 witnesses.
Reddy was arrested by CBI on September 5, 2011. Before that, the Karnataka Lokayukta , which probed illegal mining in the state said that between 2006 & 2011 over ₹12,000 crore worth of iron ore mined illegally was exported by the mining mafia & named Reddy as one of the kingpins. Reddy was granted bail in the case by the Supreme Court in January, 2015.
Pronouncing the judgment on Tuesday, special judge for CBI cases T Raghuram convicted all four accused under several sections of the Indian Penal Code, including Sections 120B, 420, 409, 468, & 471 for the charges of criminal conspiracy, cheating, criminal breach of trust, & forgery, respectively. They were also convicted under relevant provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act.
The court acquitted former Andhra Pradesh mines minister Sabitha Indra Reddy & former bureaucrat Kripanandam. IAS officer Y Srilakshmi was discharged earlier during the trial, while former assistant director of mines R Linga Reddy passed away during the proceedings.
Reddy, who has represented the Gangawati assembly constituency since May 13, 2023, had formed the Kalyana Rajya Pragati Paksha (KRPP) ahead of the assembly polls in 2023, snapping his two-decade-old association with the BJP. He, however, rejoined the BJP ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.
Following the conviction, Reddy faces immediate disqualification under Section 8(3) of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, which mandates that any elected representative sentenced to a minimum of two years in prison is disqualified from the date of conviction. The disqualification remains in effect for six years after the completion of the prison term.
This means Reddy not only risks losing his MLA seat immediately but is also barred from contesting elections for a total of 13 years, seven years of imprisonment plus six additional years post-release.
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