Bangalore, Sep 8 (IANS) The Karnataka High Court Thursday granted anticipatory bail to former chief minister H.D. Kumaraswamy and his wife H.D. Anita in a graft case involving mining lease renewal and residential site allotment by a housing society.


Kumaraswamy, now Janata Dal-Secular Lok Sabha member, and Anita, member of the state assembly, sought anticipatory bail after a trial court summoned them to appear in the two cases on Aug 30.

Granting bail, Justice L. Narayanaswamy told the couple to appear in the special Lokayukta court Friday. They had been avoiding court on grounds of ill-health.

Judge N.K. Sudhindra Rao of the Lokayukta court had summoned the couple Aug 8 to appear before him Aug 30, upon a private complaint by city-based advocate Vinod Kumar, alleging irregularities and graft.

The complaint alleged that Kumaraswamy renewed the mining lease of Jantakkal Enterprises Ltd. against the rules and illegally allotted land to a housing society, which in return gave a residential site in Bangalore to Anita.

These decisions were taken when Kumaraswamy was heading the JDS-Bharatiya Janata Party coalition government in the state from 2006 to 2007.

He is alleged to have allotted 70 acres to the Vishwabharathi Housing Cooperative Society in Bangalore. The society in return favoured his wife Anita with a 100 x 150-foot residential plot.

Kumaraswamy, who is JDS Karnataka unit president, represents Ramanagara, about 60 km from Bangalore, in the Lok Sabha.

Anita represents the Madhugiri assembly constituency in Tumkur district, about 70 km from Bangalore.

Kumaraswamy has also been indicted by the Lokayukta for flouting rules in renewing lease to Jantakkal Enterprises.