Legal experts being consulted on filing appeal against court orders, says CM's advisor

Consultations are on with senior counsel and experts on filing an appeal in the wake of court orders upholding Governor’s sanction for investigation against Chief Minister Siddaramaiah in the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) site allotment case and ordering of a Lokayukta police probe against him, a key legal advisor said on Thursday.

A Special Court here on Wednesday ordered a Lokayukta police probe against Siddaramaiah in the MUDA case, setting the stage for registering an FIR against him.

The order of the Special Court Judge, Santhosh Gajanan Bhat, came a day after a single judge bench of the High Court upheld the sanction granted by the Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot to conduct an investigation against Siddaramaiah on the allegations of illegalities in the allotment of 14 sites to his wife B M Parvathi by MUDA.

“We have been saying since the beginning, let there be any inquiry or investigation, we have no objection to it. But, certain lapses that have happened legally, it needs to be rectified, it is our duty,”, Congress MLA, senior advocate and the CM’s legal advisor A S Ponnanna told reporters here.

“So, appeal has to be filed, where and when, and what action should be taken regarding MP/MLA (Special) Court , all these things we are verifying,” Ponnanna said, when asked about the possibility of appealing to the divisional bench of the High Court or to the Supreme Court. “Discussions are on with advocates and senior counsel. Our advocate in Delhi, who argued in the case (Abhishek Manu Singhvi), we will try to seek his advice, and thereafter in a couple of days, we will make our stand clear,” he said.

Referring to the High Court verdict, Ponnanna said: “Our argument was that there was no application of mind on part of the Governor. This legal principle called application of mind is not only restricted to the Governor, but it is also applicable to the Court.” The Special Court exclusively to deal with criminal cases related to former and elected MPs/MLAs on Wednesday issued the order directing the Lokayukta police in Mysuru to initiate an investigation against Siddaramaiah on the complaint filed by RTI activist Snehamayi Krishna.

Ponnanna termed the case against the CM as “entirely politically motivated.” “Let there be any investigation or inquiry, truth cannot be hidden.”