BANGALORE: The Karnataka High Court on Friday granted six-week interim bail to former chief minister H D Kumaraswamy starting with immediate effect on a complaint alleging illegalities in the denotification of government land in 2007 when he was the CM.Justice K N Keshvanarayana, while granting the bail, directed the former chief minister to furnish personal bond of `1 lakh and a surety and instructed him to cooperate with the investigating agency and not to tamper with evidences or travel abroad without the court’s permission.One Mahadevaswamy in a complaint with the Lokayukta alleged that Kumaraswamy while as CM denotified 3.8 acres in Thanisandra village in 2007 at the behest of former minister Chennigappa though the Bangalore Development Authority had acquired it and even formed sites in Arkavathy Layout.Besides Kumaraswamy and Chennigappa, two others, Raviprakash and Sriram, who were erstwhile owners of the land, have been charged with under various sections of the IPC, including 420 and 120(b), and Prevention of Corruption Act. Netrani Island: K’taka Biodiversity Board Gets HC NoticeThe Karnataka High Court on Friday issued notice to the State Biodiversity Board on a petition seeking direction to stop the Indian Navy from using the Netrani island, off the coast of Karnataka in Bhatkal, Uttara Kannada district, for target practice by bombarding it.The petitioners, A N Karthik, P Manjunath and others, moved the court stating that the island, also known as pigeon island, is rich in biodiversity with coral reefs and added that the Navy’s training activities were threatening the island’s ecosystem.However, Commander Major V K Janardhanan of the Navy, who was also present, refuted the allegations, adding that they are not damaging the ecosystem. He said: “Our target practice is directed to a rock located at some distance into the sea, which does not harm any birds or animals.”To this, the petitioners countered that a boy had died on the island after a shell, ostensibly that of the Navy, he was sitting on exploded. A division bench comprising Chief Justice Vikramajit Sen and Justice B V Nagarathna directing the board to file its objections and adjourned the case.Bigamy Plea Against HDK Dismissed, AgainThe High Court on Friday once again dismissed the petition seeking direction to disqualify former chief minister H D Kumaraswamy from holding public office as MP for having committed the offence of bigamy, which is punishable under IPC. Hearing the recalling order, a division bench comprising Chief Justice Vikramajit Sen and Justice B V Nagarathna dismissed the petition filed by city-based advocate Shashidhar Belaguma while observing: “We do not agree with any of your submissions... what can you say if the woman states she wants to live with the man she wants to? There is much debate on this issue. We cannot order anything on this.”Belaguma had filed a petition alleging the former CM of entering into wedlock with Kannada actress Radhika while legally married to his first wife, Anita.HC Stays Lokayukta Summons on BSY, Somanna The High Court on Friday stayed the Lokayukta Court’s summons on personal appearance of former chief minister B S Yeddyurappa, Housing Minister V Somanna and others on a petition relating to the illegal denotification of land in Nagadevanahalli, near Bangalore.The Lokayukta Court had on April 13 ordered issuance of summons to Yeddyurappa, Somanna, his wife Shylaja and another person D Lingaiah to appear before the court on April 30.Later, they filed a petition before the HC seeking stay on the summons; the court had ordered a stay on case proceedings till May 6.HC Directive to APMCThe High Court on Friday directed the Agriculture Produce and Marketing Cooperation (APMC) to ban middlemen and provide basic infrastructure to farmers, in addition to paying them on the spot on a petition filed by the mango growers of Srinivaspur taluk. The petitioners, District Mango Growers and Merchants’ Association, demanded additional facilities such as electronic weighing machines and price lists at the APMCs. They also sought an end to the menace of middlemen, and cancellation of licenses to some parties. A division bench comprising Chief Justice Vikramajit Sen and Justice B V Nagarathna also summoned the secretary of HOPCOMS to be present during the next hearing.
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