The Nara Chandrababu Naidu government in Andhra Pradesh has refused to grant permission to mining baron and former Karnataka minister Gali Janardhan Reddy to resume his mining operations in Andhra Pradesh.
The Naidu government submitted an affidavit to this effect in the Supreme Court on Tuesday.
Previously, the Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy government had informed the apex court that it had no objection to granting permission to the Obulapuram Mining Corporation (OMC) of Gali Janardhan Reddy to undertake mining within the Andhra Pradesh limits.
However, the Naidu government has now informed the Supreme Court that it wants to review the no-objection certificate given by the previous government to the OMC to resume mining operations in Andhra Pradesh.
The Supreme Court is currently hearing the case regarding the resumption of mining operations by the OMC.
There were allegations against Gali Janardhan Reddy that his company had erased the boundaries between Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh and engaged in indiscriminate digging of iron ore to make huge profits.
The CBI, which investigated the case, arrested Janardhan Reddy and placed him in judicial custody. He was imprisoned in Chanchalguda jail for nearly four years. The case eventually reached the Supreme Court.
Meanwhile, based on the Supreme Court's directions, the Survey of India conducted a study to identify the boundaries between the two states and submitted its report in 2018. The apex court referred the report to the amicus curiae for review and recommendations.
While the report is still pending before the court, the Jagan government had granted permission to the OMC to continue its mining operations in Andhra Pradesh.
However, the Naidu government has now rejected this and informed the court that it wants to review the decision of the previous government.
The government stated that it would need some time to study the amicus curiae's report before making further decisions. The Supreme Court has deferred the matter for further hearing after four weeks.
