Petro products sale: HC rejects PIL for CBI probe
VIJAYAWADA: The Andhra Pradesh High Court on Tuesday dismissed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) requesting a CBI investigation into the alleged illegal sale of petroleum products, originally intended for Yanam in Puducherry, in AP.
The PIL, filed by A Bhima Naga Ramesh from Rajamahendravaram, was rejected by a bench comprising Chief Justice Dhiraj Singh Thakur and Justice Cheemalapati Ravi.
The court ruled that a CBI probe was not required as the State authorities are actively conducting inspections and taking action against violators. It noted that the Supreme Court has repeatedly clarified that the CBI probe should only be ordered in exceptional cases.
The bench found no compelling reasons to transfer the investigation from the State police to the CBI, as the petitioner failed to substantiate the need for such intervention.
The court further observed that the petroleum companies have been vigilant, conducting inquiries and taking action against the officials involved in irregularities.
Bar Council's action
The AP Bar Council has taken decisive action against lawyers who enrolled using fake educational certificates, announcing their removal from the rolls. Secretary Padmalatha issued a notification listing individuals to be struck off, following orders from the Bar Council of India, and the State's enrolment committee.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
Former bank managers among three sentenced in fraud case
Patna: A special CBI court at Patna sentenced three people, including two then branch managers of Mithila Kshetriya Gramin Bank (MKGB), Darbhanga, to three years' rigorous imprisonment with a total fine of Rs 4 lakh in a bank fraud case that took place in 1989-90, the central investigating agency said here on Sunday. The special CBI court pronouncing its judgment against the three accused — Barun Kumar Mishra, the then manager of Kahua branch, Darbhanga; Mohan Jee Mishra, the then manager of Bahera branch; and Dayanand Jha — on Saturday. "The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) registered an instant case on Aug 14,1991 against Barun Kumar, the then in charge of Kohua branch, and a field officer of the same branch. It was alleged that the accused, while functioning as branch and field officers of the MKGB during 1989-90, entered into criminal conspiracy and misappropriated a sum of Rs 2.48 lakh by manipulating debit and credit entries in a home savings safe account, shown maintained in the name of one Dayanand Jha of Darbhanga," a CBI spokesperson told TOI on Sunday. After investigation, two separate charge sheets were filed by the CBI on Nov 30, 1994, for different instances of misappropriation. The first charge sheet was filed in the court of special judge (CBI cases), Patna, against Barun Kumar, Mohan Jee and Dayanand. The court, after trial, found all three accused guilty and sentenced them accordingly. The second charge sheet was filed in the court of special judicial magistrate (CBI cases) against Barun Kumar, which is sub-judice in a Muzaffarpur court, the CBI spokesperson said.
News18
3 hours ago
- News18
EC Cites Privacy, Legal Concerns After Congress Demands Polling Booth CCTV Footage
Last Updated: The Election Commission cited privacy and legal issues in response to Rahul Gandhi's demand for CCTV footage of polling stations. Gandhi urged publishing digital voter rolls. Following a demand made by Congress MP and Lok Sabha LoP Rahul Gandhi, the Election Commission on Saturday cited privacy and legal hurdles while sharing the CCTV footage of webcasting of the polling stations. This comes after Rahul Gandhi has called upon the Election Commission to publish consolidated, digital, machine-readable voter rolls for the most recent elections to the Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabhas of all states, including Maharashtra, saying that 'telling the truth" will protect the poll panel's credibility. ECI said that the seemingly legitimate appeal of releasing the videos or CCTV footage from polling stations on election day undermines voter privacy and security, contradicting the Representation of the People Act and Supreme Court guidelines. 'What is veiled as a very logical demand is actually entirely contrary to the privacy and security concerns of the voters, legal position laid down in the Representation of the People Act, 1950/1951 and the directions of the Supreme Court of India," it said. 'Sharing of the footage, which would enable easy identification of the electors by any group or an individual, would leave both the elector who has voted as well as the elector who has not voted vulnerable to pressure, discrimination and intimidation by anti-social elements," the poll body added. It said that if a particular political party gets a lesser number of votes in a particular booth, it would easily be able to identify, through the CCTV footage, which elector has voted and which elector has not, and thereafter, may harass or intimidate the electors. The Election Commission further issued a point-by-point rebuttal to the Congress MP. . In any election, there may be electors who decide not to vote. Sharing of video footage of the poll day may result in the identification of such electors. This can also lead to profiling of the voters who voted as well as those who did not vote, which may become the basis for discrimination, denial of services, intimidation or inducement. Supreme Court order: The Supreme Court held that the right to vote includes the right not to vote, and the right of secrecy is accorded to even those persons who have decided not to vote. Video footage: Polling day videography records the sequence of voters entering the polling station and their identities, similar to Form 17A, which contains sensitive information about voters, including their ID details and signatures. Both pose a risk to voting secrecy. Violation of secrecy of voting is a punishable offence under Section 128 of RP Act, 1951 for – Any person who contravenes the provisions of this section is punishable with imprisonment for a term expending up to 3 months or fine or both.
India Today
3 hours ago
- India Today
Karnataka minister HK Patil pulls up own government over illegal mining cases
Karnataka Law Minister HK Patil has written to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah urging him to punish those guilty of illegal mining in the state, alleging that the government has not been honest and committed to ensuring proper punishment for those guilty of "looting the state's wealth".In order to bring the culprits behind illegal mining to justice, Patil also suggested steps that the Siddaramaiah government should take, according to a seven-page letter to the Chief Minister, Patil claimed that only 7.6 per cent of all illegal mining cases have been investigated and that the government has not done enough to punish the culprits and recover the lost wealth. "Between 2007 and 2011, massive treachery took place in Karnataka in the form of illegal mining. Politicians and bureaucrats systematically looted the state's wealth. The government lost Rs 1.5 lakh crore. But in spite of such a large-scale loot, the government has not demonstrated honesty and commitment in ensuring commensurate punishment for the loot and recovery of the state's wealth," Patil said in the said that there is public outrage over illegal mining in the state and the administration's inability to address most of such cases."There is outrage among people about this. A special investigation team (SIT), which is looking into a few cases, has not made progress. These cases are getting buried in government files and administrative delays," he also suggested steps that can be taken to effectively address illegal mining and their investigation:Through the Criminal Law Amendment Ordinance of 1946, a Recovery Commissioner should be immediately appointed within the jurisdiction of the State Government to seize the property of criminals accused of recovery efforts. This Commissioner must be provided with the necessary support and strength. Steps must be taken with firm determination to make recovery to the number of illegal mining cases that have completed investigation and are now in the trial phase in court, there are at least ten times more cases that have not yet undergone investigation. Investigations into such cases are essential. For that purpose, a special investigation team with stronger enforcement authority should be formed, and the police system should be structured accordingly, enabling the punishment of criminals involved in such crimes.A special court must be immediately established to investigate the cases with criminal intent related to illegal Karnataka Law Minister further called for administrators to recognise the seriousness of the matter, saying, "The serious directives already given, and the documentary evidence submitted to the then-Cabinet subcommittee, must be preserved, and a final decision must be made before they disappear for any reason".advertisementThe state minister's scathing letter came more than a month after a CBI court convicted former Karnataka Minister Gali Janardhan Reddy and three others in the Obulapuram illegal mining case. The matter concerned the investigation into the case involving the Obulapuram Mining Company (OMC), owned by OMC case involved allegations of illegal iron ore mining and export in the Bellary region of Karnataka and the Anantapur district of Andhra Pradesh. Investigations revealed that OMC had obtained mining leases under the guise of captive mining but had engaged in unauthorised mining Watch IN THIS STORY#Karnataka
