The Karnataka High Court has asked the state government to grant the necessary approval to prosecute the controversial senior IAS officer, Rohini Sindhuri (IAS:2009:KN), in the eco-friendly bags procurement case. Sindhuri was Mysuru’s Deputy Commissioner (DC) and MD of Karnataka Handloom Development Corporation (KHDC) at the time when the scam took place.
While asking the state govt for prosecution approval, Justice M. Nagaprasanna noted that on the basis of material placed on record, the spectre of corruption once raised must be allowed to unfold through the process of investigation to ascertain the truth.
The petitioner, NR Ravinchandre Gowda, had filed the case under the Prevention of Corruption Act seeking prosecution of Sindhuri, alleging that a Rs 7.5 crore loss was caused to the state govt in the purchase of eco-friendly bags in 2021. Reddy alleged that under a solid waste management project, eco-friendly bags were procured for various local bodies in the Mysuru district by paying Rs 52 per bag against the prevailing market rate of Rs 13 and filed a complaint with the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) seeking action against Sindhuri.
But the state govt declined permission to prosecute her on Sept 19, 2022, following which Gowda challenged it in the High Court.
The High Court had directed the state govt on Feb 20, 2025, to consider the request afresh. But the govt again declined approval on May 26, 2025, saying the officer was exonerated in the departmental inquiry proceedings.
It forced Gowda to approach the High Court again, on which the court observed that departmental proceedings and criminal prosecution are governed by distinct standards of proof and objectives, and the closure of one does not ipso facto extinguish the other.
The judge also remarked that the govt, instead of undertaking a meaningful re-evaluation, chose to reiterate its earlier position, and in the circumstances, a further remand would only prolong the process.
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