Bangalore:
After his first date with the courts following his indictment in the illegal mining report, former chief minister B S Yeddyurappa even managed to watch Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara yesterday evening. He, however, left the movie theatre halfway through the movie, apparently unsettled by the growing media presence. He appeared before the Lokayukta special court in one among the five cases filed by lawyers Sirajin Basha and K N Balaraj, after the High Court rejected one anticipatory bail application yesterday.
He surrendered before the Lokayukta special court and filed a regular bail application under section 439. Justice N K Sudindra Rao asked the petitioners to file objections to the bail plea and posted the case for hearing on September 7. The HC adjourned hearing of another anticipatory bail application filed by the former CM in a case related to an irrigation scam case to September 5, while the same case will come up for hearing in the Lokayukta special court on September 3. The drama unfolded yesterday morning with the former CM waiting for orders on his anticipatory bail plea at the Sagar Hospital, where he had been admitted.
Limited optionsAfter the HC rejected the bail plea, his lawyers wanted to explore the option of moving the Supreme Court for anticipatory bail. However, that was not possible because Mr Yeddyurappa had to attend the Lokayukta special court by 3 pm and apply for regular bail. Once the regular bail petitioned for was moved, Mr Yeddyurappa could not approach the SC and the option left was for him to skip the appearance before the Lokayukta special court.
However, that was a risky move since there was a possibility of a warrant being issued against him because he had already missed an appearance on August 27. Having run out viable options, he finally left the hospital and made his way to court. Mr Yeddyurappa continued to play to the masses and said on his way to court, "Everyone is enthusiastic to see me in the court, so I came out. I will go to the court and abide by the law.
After the court hearing, he went into a huddle with his family members and counsels where the lawyers are understood to have given him hope of getting bail in the case. Their logic was that the five cases of land scam have been booked under Private Complaint (PCR), which was different from the 2G-spectrum scam case or Katta Subramnaya Naidu's case, which are charge sheeted cases, in which the accused are to be prosecuted by investigative agencies.
Normally in PCR cases, the court grants bail and Mr Yeddyurappa can breathe easy. The rejection of anticipatory bail petition by the HC is nothing to do with regular bail application and he might get bail on September 7," said a senior lawyer.
Mystic shieldApart from this legal jugglery, Mr Yeddyurappa's family members are understood to have performed a special puja at Mantralaya matt seeking divine intervention and they said that it has boosted their confidence.
Mr Yeddyurappa said, "I have the blessings of Mantralaya and will come out clean."
Apparently buoyed by the developments, his family members cajoled him into watching the movie and the former CM, who is not a film buff, agreed to join them. According to sources, Mr Yeddyurappa was cheerful in the cinema and he kept saying he would remerge strongly in the public eye after getting bail next month.
While there is hope for him getting bail in the land scam cases, the irrigation scam case is apparently difficult, as the Lokayukta police is investigating and they will file a charge sheet against him. One of his lawyers said they were prepared with a defensive strategy and hoped to bail him out.
Meanwhile, the High Court posted hearing on the petition filed by former chief minister H D Kumaraswamy pleading an interim stay on the legal proceedings against him in the Lokayukta special court for September 5.
While he is the main accused in an illegal mining case, his wife Anitha is accused in a land scam.
Both are required to appear in separate cases before the Lokayukta special court today.
Quick exitB S Mr Yeddyurappa accompanied by his sons Raghavendra, Vijendra, son-in-law Sohan Kumar former minister Krishnaiah Shetty and MLA, Dr D Hemachandra Sagar among others were greeted with shouts of 'shame shame Mr Yeddyurappa' while coming out of the packed courtroom yesterday. Apparently perturbed, the former CM hurried away with his family members amidst heavy police security.