The Supreme Court has cancelled the anticipatory bail granted to IPS officer Srinath M. Joshi in an alleged extortion case involving the names of Lokayukta officials and directed him to surrender before the police within three weeks.
A bench of Justices Sanjay Kumar and Sanjeev Sachdeva passed the order on Thursday while hearing a special leave petition filed by the Karnataka Lokayukta police seeking cancellation of Joshi’s protection from arrest. Joshi has been named as the second accused in the case.
Advocate Vikram Hegde, appearing for the Lokayukta, told the court that investigators had found Joshi in continuous contact with Ningappa Sawant, the first accused and a former police constable who was dismissed from service. Hegde said the prosecution had supporting evidence of the alleged association and described the accusations against both men as serious.
The Lokayukta’s counsel also submitted that records indicated that money allegedly collected through the extortion operation had been invested in cryptocurrencies. The report does not provide the total amount allegedly collected or further details of the cryptocurrency transactions.
Counsel for Joshi disputed the prosecution’s claims. He told the court that the Lokayukta police had not produced supporting material to show that Joshi directed Ningappa Sawant to contact government officials. He also submitted that a search of Joshi’s residence had not yielded any significant documents and that Joshi had not responded to messages sent by Ningappa.
During the hearing, the bench asked about the meaning of the term “K.G.” appearing in chats between Ningappa and Joshi. According to the report, Joshi’s counsel did not provide a satisfactory answer. The bench observed that such conduct by officials holding senior positions could not be tolerated.
Ningappa G., also known as Ningappa Sawant of Talikatte in Holalkere taluk, had been arrested in the case. Following his arrest, Joshi was released from his position as Superintendent of Police of the Bengaluru City-1 division of the Lokayukta police. The Supreme Court has now directed Joshi to surrender before the police within three weeks, allowing the investigation to proceed without the protection provided by anticipatory bail.
