On Monday, July 4, in a sensational allegation, a Karnataka High Court judge said in open court that he was threatened with a transfer for pulling up the Karnataka Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB), the newsminute reported. A sitting judge of the High Court warned him that he could be transferred as the ADGP of the ACB had expressed unhappiness with the judge’s remarks against the ACB, Justice Hethur Puttaswamygowda Sandesh of the Karnataka High Court alleged in an open court.
Last week, during a hearing of a bail plea of P S Mahesh, a deputy Tahsildar in the office of the Bengaluru City Deputy Commissioner, Justice Sandesh had made observations against the ACB and its functioning.
In exchange of favourable order in a land dispute, two staff members of the office were arrested for receiving a bribe of Rs.5 lakh.
The High Court, taking objections as to how senior officers were being protected and only junior staff were being prosecuted in the case, had then said that the ACB had become a “centre of corruption” and “collection centre”. The HC had also claimed that the ACB is presently “headed by a tainted ADGP.” After the rebuking by the HC, J Manjunath was added as accused number three in the bribery case and was removed as the Deputy Commissioner of Bengaluru Urban.
When the bail application came up again for hearing On Monday, July 4, Justice Sandesh said in open court that he had learnt that a fellow judge informed him that he could be transferred, as the ADGP is not happy with the judge’s remarks. Saying that he was ready to be transferred, Justice Sandesh told the court: “I am ready for it for the good of people. Your ACB ADGP (Seemanth Kumar Singh) seems to be a powerful person. Somebody has told this to my colleague. I have been informed about it by a judge. The threat of transfer will be recorded in the order.”
“I don’t fear anyone. I am ready to bell the cat. I have not accumulated property after becoming a judge. I don’t care if I lose the position. I am the son of a farmer. I am ready to till the land. I don’t belong to any political party. I don’t adhere to any political ideology,” Justice Sandesh said.
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