Bangalore: No prima facie case has been made
out against former Karnataka chief minister B S Yeddyurappa
under the Prevention of Corruption Act in an alleged land
scams, his counsel told the Karnataka High Court today.
The court adjourned till tomorrow hearing on Yeddyurappa`s
application seeking bail following his arrest for alleged
irregularities in denotification of government lands.
Justice B V Pinto, who heard the arguments by
Yeddyurappa`s counsel K Uday Lalith, had adjourned hearing
till October 24, but agreed to advance it to tomorrow
following a plea by him.
Lalith told the court that Yeddyurappa had not benefited
from the denotification of land as alleged by the complainant
Sirajin Basha.
Arguing that the case did not attract Prevention of
Corruption Act under which allegations have been levelled
against Yeddyurappa, he said, "There is no prima facie case
made out so far."
Yeddyurappa only exercised the powers vested in the Chief
Minister to denotify lands and it was the various departments
that issued the orders.
Arguing for bail, he said since Yeddyurappa has already
demitted office there was no question of his misusing office.
Senior counsel C H Hanumantharaya representing the
complainants opposed the interim bail plea on the ground that
it cannot be entertained "on merits of the case" and the
accused can only apply for regular bail.
Yeddyurappa was remanded to judicial custody by a
Lokayukta court in connection with two private complaints
filed against him on alleged land scams on October 15.
The former Chief Minister who spent three days in the
Jayadeva Cardiology hospital, was shifted to the state run
Victoria Hospital on October 18. He got discharged from
hospital yesterday and returned to Parappana Agrahara prison.
The judge granted two weeks exemption from bail conditions
imposed by Lokayukta court on Yeddyurappa`s sons, B Y
Raghavendra, Lok Sabha member and B Y Vijendra, who are among
the other accused.
The orders came on a plea filed by Raghavendra and his
brother seeking relaxation in bail conditions that they should
surrender their passports. On October 15, the Lokayukta court
had granted them conditional bail.
PTI
