CBI special court sentences Gali Janardhan Reddy, three others to seven-year jail term in illegal mining case

BLA from Karnataka Gali Janardan Reddy. File
| Picture Credit score: Sudhakara Jain

A Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) special court in Hyderabad on Tuesday (Could 6, 2025) awarded seven-year imprisonment to 4 individuals, together with Bharatiya Janata Get together (BJP) MLA from Karnataka Gali Janardan Reddy, and his relative B.V. Srinivas Reddy, managing director, Obulapuram Mining Company (OMC), in a case of illegal mining in Anantapur district of undivided Andhra Pradesh. The case was registered by the CBI practically 16 years in the past.

Sabitha Indra Reddy, Residence Minister of Andhra Pradesh when the case was registered, and retired Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer B. Krupanandam have been acquitted of the fees framed in opposition to them due to lack of proof. IAS officer Y. Srilakshmi has already acquired reduction in the identical case because the Telangana Excessive Court allowed her discharge petition in November 2022.

Additionally learn | Supreme Court stays mining by OMC in Andhra Pradesh

Ms. Indra Reddy later joined the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS), served as a Minister in the erstwhile BRS authorities, and is at the moment the Maheshwaram MLA from that occasion.

Amongst these convicted are V.D. Rajagopal, then Director of the Mining Division, and Janardan Reddy’s private assistant, Ali Khan. A high quality of ₹10,000 every was additionally imposed on Rajagopal, Khan, Janardan Reddy, and Srinivas Reddy. A high quality of ₹2 lakh has been imposed on OMC for alleged illegalities.

The OMC excavated iron ore in Obulapuram village in the Ballari reserve forest space of Anantapur district alongside the Andhra Pradesh-Karnataka border. The Congress authorities in 2009 lodged a grievance with the Centre alleging that the corporate was mining iron ore in violation of all guidelines. It was alleged that the OMC was illegally extracting minerals in areas past its permitted jurisdiction.

The CBI registered a case on December 7, 2009. After two years of investigation, it filed a chargesheet in 2011, accusing the OMC of indulging in illegal mining to the tune of ₹884.13 crore. The CBI examined 219 witnesses and introduced 3,400 paperwork. One of many 9 accused, Linga Reddy, died throughout the trial interval.

The case took many twists and turns after the First Info Report (FIR) was lodged in 2009. The accused moved the Excessive Court and secured orders staying the probe in opposition to them. The investigating company then appealed to the Division Bench and had the orders vacated. This resulted in a protracted authorized battle. The CBI filed 4 chargesheets in the case from 2009 to 2014. The chargesheet mentioned OMC exported the iron ore it extracted to different nations illegally, and indulged in benami transactions.