Bengaluru, Apr 15 (UNI) The Karnataka High Court on Tuesday permitted the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) to file a chargesheet against former Minister and BJP MLA Ramesh Jarkiholi and two others in connection with alleged violations of loan conditions amounting to Rs 439 crore from the Karnataka State Cooperative Apex Bank and its associated banks.

Justice Pradeep Singh Yerur, while hearing a criminal petition, observed that since the petitioners had cooperated with the investigation and the probe was complete, the CID may go ahead and submit the chargesheet before the Special Court.

However, the judge directed that no further action shall be taken by the Special Court until further orders from the High Court.

The chargesheet, said to run over 2,000 pages, implicates Jarkiholi along with co-petitioners Vasant V Patil and Shankar A Pawade, all former directors of Soubhagya Laxmi Sugars Ltd. They had moved the High Court seeking to quash the FIR registered under Sections 406, 420, and 34 of the IPC by the Vishveshwarapuram police.

The petitioners contended that their resignation as directors did not amount to an offence, as they remained guarantors to the loan despite stepping down. The prosecution, however, maintained that the resignations were part of a deliberate attempt to evade liability.

The matter has been posted for further hearing on June 3.

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