BANGALORE: The criminal defamation case filed by the State Government against the suspended BJP legislator, G. Janardhan Reddy, for accusing Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy of taking a bribe of Rs. 150 crore from mine owners has turned into a battle between two leading lawyers.

While senior counsel C.H. Hanumantharaya is the Special Public Prosecutor in the case, another senior criminal lawyer, C.V. Nagesh, is appearing for Mr. Reddy.

Earlier, in the sensational Shakereh Khaleeli murder case, Mr. Nagesh was the Special Public Prosecutor and Mr. Hanumantharaya was counsel for the accused, Swami Shraddananda, who was sentenced to death by the Karnataka High Court.

As their fellow advocates recollect, there were few cases in which Mr. Nagesh and Mr. Hanumantharaya appeared for the opposite parties. In the recent past there have been not many cases where a leading criminal lawyer has represented the State.

Sensational cases

Over the years, these two lawyers have defended the accused in several sensational cases. Mr. Nagesh and Mr. Hanumantharaya have also appeared for prominent politicians in cases that had serious political ramifications.

Mr. Nagesh was counsel for the former Chief Minister S. Bangarappa in the multicrore Classik Computer case, which was investigated by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

Mr. Bangarappa and the former Chief Secretary J. Alexander, who were accused of purchasing computers at inflated prices thereby causing a loss to the exchequer, were acquitted of the charge. Mr. Alexander later served as a Minister in the S.M. Krishna government.

Mr. Nagesh was also the advocate for M. Veerappa Moily, who succeeded Mr. Bangarappa as Chief Minister, in the infamous Jharkhand Mukti Morcha bribery scandal. Mr. Moily was exonerated of the charge.

Mr. Hanumantharaya appeared for the former Minister B.T. Lalitha Naik before the Justice N.D.V. Bhat Commission that inquired into the vandalising of an Ambedkar statue, an incident in which her son, Vishwajeet, was an accused. She was a Minister in the J.H. Patel government when the incident took place.

Mr. Hanumantharaya was counsel for two of the accused in the serial church blasts case. The court acquitted the two. He was the Special Public Prosecutor in the sensational Hangarahalli bonded labour case that was tried by a Mandya district court a few years ago.

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