A ten-member Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) team today questioned mining transporters and workers in Hospet in connection with alleged illegal mining of iron ore which caused a loss of Rs 198 crore to the exchequer in 2009-10.
The CBI team first picked up mining transporters and workers from various locations and whisked them away to the Government Guest House for questioning, police said.
Earlier, five CBI officials of the team conducted a raid on an apartment of a transporter located at Saibaba Colony and seized documents related to mining, police said.
Former Minister and mining baron Gali Janardhan Reddy and six others were chargesheeted by CBI in a Bangalore court in May in connection with the case.
CBI had slapped Indian Penal Code sections related to criminal breach of trust by public servant, cheating, forgery among others besides provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act against them.
It had alleged that Reddy and others entered into a criminal conspiracy during 2009-10 to illegally excavate iron ore from various forest areas in Bellary district and surrounding areas.
According to the chargesheet, they excavated iron ore to sell it to various traders and transported the ore to Belekeri port for export purpose causing a wrongful loss of Rs 198 crores to the state exchequer and wrongful gain to themselves.
CBI has taken up the investigations on the directives of the Supreme Court. The apex court had appointed a Central Empowered Committee(CEC), which recommended an indepth investigation of the mining and exports of the ore.
