Justice Anand Byrareddy granted relief to Yeddyurappa observing that if a person of the stature of a former Chief Minister is sent to judicial custody even for a day, it could be detrimental to his career and reputation.
Moreover, Byrareddy observed that since Yeddyurappa had suffered a month's judicial custody in another case, it should not be repeated in this instance also.
The Lokayukta Court had on September 10, 2011 issued notices to Yeddyurappa and then Industries Minister Murugesh R Nirani for their alleged involvement in forging the signature of an industrialist to grab 26 acres of land in Devanahalli.
Pasha alleged that Yeddyurappa and Nirani had written to the government forging his signature, stating that his company was no longer interested in undertaking the project after which a high-level committee cancelled it.