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State reacts cautiously to Centre's decision

By Our Special Correspondent

GULBARGA Nov. 23. The State Government reacted cautiously to the decision of the Union Government to hand over the multi-crore stamp paper racket to the CBI.

The Home Minister, M. Mallikarjun Kharge, who is directly supervising the investigation of the scam, told presspersons that he did not want to hastily comment on the decision of the Centre without studying the full text of the judgement of the Allahabad High Court.

He said the Law Department would study the judgement and submit a report to the State Government on its implications and added that it was not clear whether the court had directed the CBI to investigate the new angles of case or to probe the matter from the beginning.

Mr. Kharge said the State police had filed 10 chargesheets in the case and constituted a special court to try it.

"I don't know what will happen to the chargesheets filed by the Karnataka police now," he said.

To another question, Mr. Kharge said the STAMPIT chief would leave for New Delhi soon to participate in a meeting with CBI officials to discuss the latest developments in the investigation of the scam.

To a question on whether the Centre had intruded into the rights of the States and overlooked the legal provisions by handing over the investigation to the CBI without the concurrence of the State Government, Mr. Kharge said the State would be able to react to the question only after getting the full text of the Allahabad High Court order.

He said the State Government was not protecting anyone involved in the scam. "We have taken the scam as a serious offence affecting the economy of the country and there has been no delay in completing the investigation and filing chargesheets."

Mr. Kharge dismissed the charges that the State police was making an attempt to silence Telgi. He said such allegations do not deserved to be commented upon. On the use of mobile phones inside the high security Bangalore prison by Telgi, he said that continuous monitoring of the activities of Telgi inside the prison had been ordered. Close circuit television cameras had been installed in the cell where Telgi is lodged, he added.

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