The Supreme Court has dismissed IAS officer Y. Srilakshmi’s plea seeking discharge in the multi-crore Obulapuram mining scam case. The ruling revives her trial over alleged abuse of power and violation of mining laws.
The Supreme Court on Tuesday dismissed a plea filed by senior IAS officer Y. Srilakshmi seeking discharge in the multi-crore Obulapuram Mining Company case, clearing the way for her criminal trial to proceed.
A Bench of Justices M. M. Sundresh and N. K. Singh upheld the Telangana High Court’s decision refusing to discharge her from the case. With this ruling, the top court has effectively paved the path for the continuation of trial proceedings against the senior bureaucrat in the long-pending mining scam matter.
The Supreme Court had earlier, on August 29 last year, stayed the trial against Srilakshmi and issued notice to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on her plea. However, after considering the matter in detail, the Court has now declined to interfere with the High Court’s latest order, thereby reviving the prosecution against her.
Srilakshmi served as the Industries and Commerce Secretary of undivided Andhra Pradesh between 2006 and 2009. During her tenure, the CBI alleged that she misused her official position to favour M/s Obulapuram Mining Company Private Limited, a firm owned by businessman and former Karnataka minister Gali Janardhan Reddy.
The case has seen several rounds of litigation over the years. After the CBI filed a supplementary charge sheet naming her as an accused in the alleged illegal mining scam, Srilakshmi approached the trial court seeking discharge. She argued that the case against her was based only on suspicion and that there were no concrete allegations justifying the framing of charges.
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Her discharge plea was dismissed by the trial court in 2022. She then moved the Telangana High Court by filing a criminal revision petition. On November 8, 2022, the High Court allowed her revision and discharged her from the case.
The CBI challenged this order before the Supreme Court. On May 7, 2023, the apex court set aside the High Court’s order and sent the matter back for a fresh and reasoned judgment. Upon reconsideration, the Telangana High Court dismissed her revision petition on July 25 and restored the trial proceedings against her.
The allegations against Srilakshmi are serious in nature. According to the CBI, she abused her position as a public servant to extend undue benefit to Obulapuram Mining Company. It is alleged that she omitted an important condition of captive mining while finalising the mining lease and issued two government notifications in favour of the company.
The investigating agency claims that these actions were in violation of the provisions of the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957, as well as the Mineral Concession Rules, 1960. The CBI further alleges that her decisions enabled other accused persons to cheat the government and resulted in massive financial losses to the public exchequer.
Srilakshmi has been charged under Sections 120B (criminal conspiracy) and 409 (criminal breach of trust by public servant) of the Indian Penal Code, along with relevant provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988.
With the Supreme Court now refusing to discharge her, the trial in the Obulapuram Mining Company case will move forward, marking another significant development in one of the most high-profile illegal mining cases in the region.
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