File objections to IAS officer's bail plea by Aug 1: K'taka HC to ACB

The Karnataka High Court has directed the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) to file its statement of objections to the bail plea of arrested IAS officer J Manjunath before August 1. Manjunath, the former Bengaluru Urban Deputy Commissioner, was arrested on July four in a Rs five lakh bribery case.

The arrest was made soon after Justice H P Sandesh called for the service records of the IAS officer and blamed the ACB for not probing senior officers involved in the case. Justice Sandesh was hearing the bail plea of deputy tahsildar P S Mahesh, who was already arrested in the case.

Manjunath’s bail petition came up for hearing before Justice K Natarajan on Thursday. Manjunath’s counsel pleaded that false charges were foisted on him due to wrong inference drawn from the details of the bribery case. Manjunath’s bail plea was earlier on July 11 rejected by the special court hearing the bribery case. He has now approached the HC.

His petition pleads that ”the investigating officer has implicated the petitioner falsely by submitting an additional report, which is absurd, unjust and without jurisdiction.” Manjunath has also approached the Supreme Court against the HC order that had called for his service records.