Sasikala’s VVIP treatment : Panel probing corruption in jail seeks more time to submit report

Retired IAS officer Vinay Kumar, who was given the charge of inquiring into the alleged corruption charges levelled by DIG Roopa in her report, has sought more time to complete the probe.

In her report, D Roopa, who was then deputy inspector general (Prisons), alleged that not only were drugs sold inside the jail, there was "a talk" that Rs 2 crore had exchanged hands to give preferential treatment to Sasikala Natarajan, which included an exclusive kitchen among other perks.Retired IAS officer Vinay Kumar has sought an extension of 15 days to submit the inquiry report, which was to be handed over to the state government today.The retired IAS officer will now submit the report by August 31.

D Roopa's report also alleged that "special treatment" was being provided to another high-profile convict Abdul Karim Telgi, the fake stamp paper scam kingpin. The alleged five-star treatment included LED television and food cooked separately for him.  Siddaramaiah-led Karnataka government had ordered a probe into the corruption charges levelled by DIG (Prisons) D Roopa against Bengaluru Central Jail officials and her boss DGP (Prisons) H N Sathyanarayana Rao.

Vinay Kumar, however, has been asked to probe corruption in the jail and not specifically instructed to look into the Rs 2 crore bribe allegation.In the wake of the report, D Roopa was transferred and posted commissioner for traffic and road safety. DGP (Prisons) H N Sathyanarayana Rao too was shifted with immediate effect. Rao, however, had rubbished the charge levelled against him by Roopa, and called it "absolutely false, baseless and wild", and subsequently served Roopa with a legal notice.