Bangalore: Former Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yeddyurappa has surrendered in a Lokayukta court. He has been sent to judicial custody till October 22. A special court hearing land scam cases filed against Mr Yeddyurappa rejected his bail plea earlier in the day and issued an arrest warrant against him. Following this, a three-member team of Lokayukta police reached Mr Yeddyurappa's residence at around 3pm with the warrant. An hour later, they left his house. Mr Yeddyurappa was not present there.
The former Chief Minister's lawyer had earlier said he will approach the High Court for bail and apply for exemption from arrest. "If the High Court says he has to surrender, he will do so," he added.
The 63-year-old BJP leader, who faces arrest, did not appear in court today during the bail hearing. He sent a medical certificate saying he was suffering from back pain and sought exemption from personal appearance.
The cases against Mr Yeddyurappa pertain to denotification of land near Bangalore while he was the Chief Minister. He has been accused of illegally denotifying land that had been reserved for projects of public interest to benefit people close to him.
Mr Yeddyurappa's party has said it will continue to support the leader. "Yeddyurappa is our leader, we will continue to support him. Charges against him have not yet been proven," said Dhananjay Kumar, BJP's state spokesperson.
The Lokayukta court has also denied bail to former minister SN Krishnaiah Setty, another accused in the case.
Mr Yeddyurappa's two sons, - BJP Lok Sabha member BY Raghavendra and BY Vijayendra, and his son-in-law R Sohan Kumar have also been accused of conspiring to denotify land in and around Bangalore in return for monetary gains. They were, however, granted conditional bail today.
Mr Yeddyurappa was forced to resign as Chief Minister of Karnataka on July 31 after a report on illegal mining declared him guilty of accepting kickbacks from companies who were given mining licences.
Karnataka's former Lokayukta, Justice Santosh Hegde, had filed several reports that suggested Mr Yeddyurappa misused his public office fairly often to benefit his friends and family.
His prosecution under the Prevention of Corruption Act - on criminal charges - was sanctioned by the Governor, HR Bhardwaj.
The former Chief Minister's lawyer had earlier said he will approach the High Court for bail and apply for exemption from arrest. "If the High Court says he has to surrender, he will do so," he added.
The cases against Mr Yeddyurappa pertain to denotification of land near Bangalore while he was the Chief Minister. He has been accused of illegally denotifying land that had been reserved for projects of public interest to benefit people close to him.
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The Lokayukta court has also denied bail to former minister SN Krishnaiah Setty, another accused in the case.
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Mr Yeddyurappa was forced to resign as Chief Minister of Karnataka on July 31 after a report on illegal mining declared him guilty of accepting kickbacks from companies who were given mining licences.
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His prosecution under the Prevention of Corruption Act - on criminal charges - was sanctioned by the Governor, HR Bhardwaj.
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