A special CBI court in Hyderabad has framed charges against former IAS officer Y Srilaxmi in the Obulapuram Mining Company (OMC) mining lease case, bringing the long-running matter closer to trial. The court has posted the case for October 16 to fix the trial schedule.
The charges include criminal conspiracy under Section 120B read with Section 409 of the Indian Penal Code, relating to criminal breach of trust, along with offences under the Prevention of Corruption Act. Srilaxmi denied the allegations, pleaded innocence and sought a trial, according to the report by the Times of India.
Srilaxmi appeared before principal special judge for CBI cases Pattabhirama Rao. The judge explained the charges to her in Telugu and English. The case concerns alleged irregularities in mining leases granted to OMC in D Hirehal and Obulapuram in Anantapur district of Andhra Pradesh.
The CBI has alleged that Srilaxmi, who was industries secretary when the alleged irregularities took place, took decisions favouring OMC while granting leases covering 68.5 hectares and 39.5 hectares. The agency has also accused her of rejecting applications from Sathavahana Ispat Ltd and GimpEx Pvt Ltd and omitting the term “captive mining” from a government order.
The proceedings follow several rounds of litigation over whether the case should continue. Srilaxmi had initially approached the high court seeking to quash the CBI case. The high court refused, citing prima facie material. Her subsequent plea to stay the trial pending the resolution of a boundary dispute before the Supreme Court was also rejected.
Srilaxmi later filed a discharge petition before the special CBI court, but the court dismissed it. The high court had initially quashed the case against her while hearing a revision petition, after which the CBI approached the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court remitted the matter to the high court for fresh consideration.
On July 28 last year, the high court again refused to quash the case. Srilaxmi then moved the Supreme Court, which dismissed her petition on February 17. The latest court order means the criminal proceedings will now proceed against her, although the charges remain allegations to be tested during the trial.
The court is scheduled to determine the trial timetable on October 16.
