ED questions lodging of FIR against its officials in Karnataka HC

Bengaluru, July 23 (IANS) In a major development, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) approached the Karnataka High Court on Tuesday questioning the filing of an FIR against its officials by the state police in connection with the alleged multi-crore tribal welfare board scam.

In its petition, the ED has claimed that the FIR is being lodged with the intention to botch up the investigation conducted by the authority regarding the scam.

The ED also has stated that without any preliminary inquiry, the FIR has been registered by the Karnataka Police. Madhukar Deshpande, senior counsel representing ED, has submitted to the court that the matter needs an urgent hearing.

The High Court is most likely to take up the matter at noon.

The Karnataka Police on Monday registered an FIR against the two Enforcement Directorate (ED) officers who are investigating the State Tribal Welfare Board case.

The FIR was registered by Wilson Garden police station in Bengaluru based on the police complaint by B. Kallesh, the former Managing Director (MD) of the Tribal Welfare Board and incumbent Additional Director in the Social Welfare Department.

"The ED officials had threatened Kallesh with arrest and subjected him to mental torture to confess that former Minister B. Nagendra, higher government authorities and the State Finance Department had directed him to deposit money to the MG Road Bank. The ED said they would help him if he agreed to their statement," the FIR said.

The Finance Department is held by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah.

The police have registered a case under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita Sections 3 (5), 351 (2) and 352.

Congress legislators led by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Dy CM D.K. Shivakumar staged a protest on Tuesday against the ED condemning its bid to pressurise the officer to name the CM, Dy CM in the alleged multi-crore tribal welfare board scam.