HC directs special court to hear corruption case against BSY afresh

News Network

September 7, 2022

Bengaluru, Sept 8: The Karnataka High Court on Wednesday restored a private complaint against former Chief Minister and senior BJP leader, B S Yediyurappa and his family members, accusing them of 'taking bribe' for awarding government contracts.

A Sessions court here had dismissed a plea seeking a probe into the allegations of corruption against Yediyurappa as the then Governor had refused to sanction it. T J Abraham, a social activist, had lodged the complaint alleging that Yediyurappa and his family members had taken bribe from Ramalingam Construction Company and other shell companies in return for awarding Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) contracts. He had sought a special investigation team (SIT) investigation into the charges.

Others named in the complaint are Yediyurappa’s son B Y Vijayendra, grandson Shashidar Maradi, son-in-law Sanjay Sree, Chandrakanth Ramalingam, current BDA chairperson and MLA S T Somashekar, IAS officer G C Prakash, K Ravi and Virupakshappa. After the Sessions Court dismissed the complaint on July 8, 2021, saying it was “not maintainable in the absence of valid sanction,” the complainant approached the High Court.

Justice S Sunil Dutt Yadav had heard the matter and reserved the order. The judgement was pronounced today.

Allowing the petition in part, the HC set aside the order of the Sessions Court and directed the LXXXI Additional City Civil and Sessions Judge court to hear afresh the complaint. “The Special Court may proceed from the stage post presentation of Private Complaint." “The rejection of the sanction for prosecution would not come in the way of continuance of proceedings against the Accused No.1 (Yediyurappa) upon restoration of the complaint,” the judge said.

The Governor’s rejection of sanction has to be ignored, the high court said, as such a request is to be made by a police officer of an investigation agency and not by the complainant. Hence, T J Abraham approaching the Governor for sanction was of no legal significance and the Sessions Court need not have rejected the complaint due to that reason, the HC noted.

The complainant had sought the Special Court to take cognizance of the alleged crimes under the Prevention of Corruption Act, Indian Penal Code and the Prevention of Money Laundering Act. However, the judge said the Special Court has no authority to take cognizance under the PMLA Act and the complainant has to go through proper procedure. The complainant had alleged that the work order was issued in favour of Ms Ramalingam Construction Company Pvt Ltd by the BDA.

IAS officer G C Prakash demanded Rs 12 crore bribe for the same on behalf of Yediyurappa. Chandrakanth Ramalingam is accused of handing over the cash to the tune of Rs 12 crore to K Ravi. This was allegedly collected by Prakash and paid to Yediyurappa through his son. It is also alleged that Yediyurappa, Vijayendra, Shashidar Maradi and Sanjay Sree indulged in money laundering using shell companies.

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RuTAGe smart village centres in DK, Udupi to being technology closer to rural communities

News Network

January 20,2026

Mangaluru: In a major step towards strengthening rural innovation, the Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser (PSA) to the Government of India is supporting the establishment of RuTAGe Smart Village Centres (RSVCs) across the country through collaborations with academic institutions, civil society organisations and philanthropic partners.

As part of this national initiative, Nitte (Deemed to be University) will set up the first RSVCs in the region at Nitte GP in Udupi district and at the Nitte Health Centre, Sevanjali Trust, Farangipete, in Dakshina Kannada district. The centres will be inaugurated on January 21. In South India, the programme is being implemented by the Section Infin-8 Foundation (SI-8).

Speaking to reporters on Monday, SI-8 founder-director Vishwas US said experts from Nitte University and SI-8 would work closely with farmers, students, youth and local entrepreneurs to adapt and deploy technologies tailored to local needs.

Project head Prof Iddya Karunasagar, representing Nitte DU, said the RSVCs at Nitte and Farangipete would serve as demonstration hubs for a wide range of agriculture, energy, skill-development and assistive technologies. These include solar dryers for fruits, vegetables and crops; soil-testing solutions; power weeders and women-friendly farm tools; wind-powered devices for rural artisans; grain storage systems; grass-cutting and tree-climbing equipment; and liquid fertiliser production using cowshed waste.

SI-8 CEO Aravind C Kumar said the centres would also provide access to digital and knowledge-based platforms such as ISRO applications, government scheme portals, market linkage tools and gamified learning resources, along with assistive technologies for persons with visual impairments.

Highlighting the broader impact of the initiative, Principal Scientific Adviser Prof Ajay Kumar Sood said it demonstrated how applied research could bridge the rural–urban divide and help create self-reliant, technology-enabled villages.

The initiative has been made possible through philanthropic support from Dr NC Murthy of ACM Business Solutions, LLC, USA. Dr Sapna Poti, Director (Strategic Alliances) at the Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser, said the long-term objective is to build self-sufficient, technology-driven communities capable of generating sustainable livelihoods on their own.

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