Mining baron Janardhan Reddy to walk free, elated fans throng outside jail

Bengaluru, Jan 23: Dozens of fans and supporters of the mining baron Janardhan Reddy have assembled near the Parappana Agrahara prison premises as former Minister is scheduled to walk out of jail on Friday.

The fans who performed milk‘abhisheka' on his posters and banners have been eargerly waiting for the release of their leader. "It looks like Friday is an auspicious day for our leader to walk out of the prison," said one of the supporters.

Meanwhile, the city police have enforced Section 144 in the half kilometer radius surrounding the prison from Thursday afternoon to Friday mid-night in the wake of possible release of former Minister.

The orders were imposed following inputs from intelligence agencies that there could be law and order issues as a large crowd of Reddy's followers would gathering at the Central Jail to celebrate his release, says media reports.

The Supreme Court on Tuesday granted bail to mining baron and former Karnataka minister Gali Janardhan Reddy, who is an accused in the illegal mining case involving his Obulapuram Mining Company (OMC).

The apex court granted bail after CBI submitted that the investigation in the case involving Reddy is complete and both the chargesheet as well as the supplementary chargesheet have been filed.

Taking on record the submission of the agency, a bench headed by Chief Justice HL Dattu said, "Since investigating agency has no objection in granting bail, we are granting bail to the petitioner (Reddy)."

While granting bail, the bench imposed certain conditions including that Reddy will be released from jail on furnishing two sureties of Rs 10 lakh each and that he shall not leave the country without the permission of the court while directing him to surrender his passport.

The bench further said that he should not in any way try to influence the witnesses or tamper with evidence.

Reddy had moved the apex court in 2013 challenging the High Court's decision to reject his bail petition.

He is facing several criminal cases and was lodged in a jail in Andhra Pradesh. He was arrested in 2011.

Janardhan Reddy and his brother-in-law B V Srinivas Reddy, Managing Director of OMC, were arrested by CBI on September 5, 2011 from Bellary in Karnataka and brought to Hyderabad.

In the OMC case, the company is accused of changing mining lease boundary markings and indulging in illegal mining in the Bellary Reserve Forest area, spread over Bellary in Karnataka and Anantapur district of Andhra Pradesh.

OneIndia News

(With agency inputs)