Talking about the tainted background of Kapil Mohan and why he should not be allowed to head a body like the KAT, H C Shivaramu, speaking to newskarnataka.com said that it was in August last year that that the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), which is investigating the illegal cricket betting in the State, on a tip off from the Income Tax Department raided an empty flat in the upmarket Golden Grand apartment complex in North Bengaluru and seized Rs 4.37 crore in cash and 2.5 kg of gold and diamonds worth crores of rupees. The flat was registered in the name of ‘PSK Finance Solutions Pvt. Ltd,’ which is linked to Kapil Mohan’s family and his father Naresh Mohan is one of the directors. The news was widely reported in the media as well.

The government then handed over the Disproportionate Assets (DA) case to the Lokayukta police, which in November reportedly seized child pornography in DVDs and an external hard disk from the flat. The disk is also said to contain personal details of Mohan himself.

While sources in both the enforcement agencies stated that the case is under investigation (UI); the fact remains that in the last ten months, ever since it came to light in August 2015, there has been no “significant” breakthrough on the money trail in the alleged disproportionate assets (DA) case, which is being probed by the Lokayukta police or the child pornography case, which was registered in November by the City police.

Mohan has meanwhile consistently denied the ownership of the unaccounted wealth and the dubious DVDs to the Lokayukta and City police and has alleged that he is being hounded by vested interests.

According to sources, the Lokayukta police had summoned Mohan in connection to the disproportionate assets (DA) case. A notice was sent to him on June 7, 2016 asking him to file a reply before June 23 regarding the DA case.

Mohan reached the Lokayukta office at around 1.45 pm on Monday to meet SP (rural) Abdul Ahad. The staff asked him to wait outside as both the IGP and the SP were in a meeting at ADGP Dr S Parashivamurthy’s chambers. A few staff said that, Mohan was feeling uncomfortable and while leaving, dropped some powder outside SP Abdul Ahad’s chambers and repeated the same outside IGP Pronab Mohanty’s chambers too.

In the meantime, Kapil Mohan’s appearance in Lokayukta office proves that Lokayukta Police is still on the job putting to rest all the allegations of inaction in the case. Kapil Mohan, who had returned without meeting any Lokayukta police official, later sent a person from his office, with a letter stating that he had visited Lokayukta office and finding that there was no one in SP’s office, he had returned. A Lokayukta police official who did not want to be quoted, said, when asked whether CCTV footage had thrown light on Mohan’s entry and exit, and dropping of some powder like substance he said, it is a process that will take time, and his higher-ups will decide on the course of action.

Not considering the tainted back ground of Kapil Mohan, he was appointed as the chairman of Karnataka Appellate Tribunal (K.A.T) which is a common Appellate Authority that deals with cases pertaining to Department of Revenue, Co-operation and Commercial Taxes, but is attached to Revenue department according to an Advocate. But what the litigants and the advocates are worried about is, whether they would be able to get unbiased justice.

A section of the Advocates and litigants in the state, are of the opinion, that cases are already pending for a long time before the KAT, and whether they will be disposed of in an unbiased manner is a question under chairmanship having so many allegations. We cannot afford justice to be denied to us after delaying it for so long they said.

The K.A.T. consists of the Chairman and 8 Benches. The Chairman is a very Senior I.A.S. officer of the Above Super Time Scale Grade. Each Bench has one Judicial Member and one Administrative Member. There are two Revenue Benches, two Cooperation Benches & Four Commercial Tax Benches.