In a major relief to External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna, the Supreme Court on Friday stayed all further proceedings pursuant to the registration of an FIR which permitted a police probe, on the basis of the a Karnataka Lokayukta report, into his alleged role in de-reservation of 11, 620 sq.km of forest land during his tenure as Chief Minister.
A Bench of Justices Altamas Kabir and Gyan Sudha Misra said, “We are inclined to stay the proceedings. Accordingly the proceedings on the FIR on the issue ordered by the Lokayukta will remain stayed.”
The Bench said it was pointed out by counsel that a supplementary Lokayukta report was required to be submitted. This would indicate that the complaint was premature as the Lokayukta was yet to make the final report. Stating that the issue of locus standi of complainant Abraham should also be gone into, the Bench issued notice to him and the Karnataka Government and sought their response in three weeks. It was on the complainant's plea that the First Information Report was registered. The Bench passed the brief order on Mr. Krishna's special leave petition against an order of the Karnataka High Court that refused to quash the FIR, on the basis of which a probe was undertaken by the Lokayukta police into the decision taken during his tenure from 1999 to 2004.
Earlier, senior counsel K.K. Venugopal, appearing for Mr. Krishna, argued that the impugned order permitting police investigation into a policy decision taken by the Cabinet in 2002 to dereserve forest land, pursuant to the National Mineral Policy, ignored the fundamental principles of constitutional law and raised serious issues of national and public importance. The crucial question was whether criminal liability could be attached to a collective Cabinet decision.
However, counsel Prashant Bhushan, appearing for Mr. Abraham, said the Lokayukta had given a prima facie finding that there was a scam in the de-reservation of 11,620 sq.km of forest land, which was critical for exploitation of iron ore. This report had adequate material for registration of the FIR, he said and opposed a stay on the probe.
But Justice Gyan Sudha Misra told Mr. Bhushan that the Lokayukta had not yet submitted the final report and it would be premature to act on the basis of the first report.
In his SLP, Mr. Krishna said every Cabinet decision, if challenged, would be vulnerable to allegations, however wild or baseless, of individual criminality, and the functioning of the government would come to a standstill. Pointing out that the complainant was an active member of the Bahujan Samaj Party, Mr. Krishna and if the probe was permitted to stand, the consequences would be far reaching and the very functioning of the Central and State governments would be in jeopardy.
