The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Saturday carried out searches at 17 locations across Karnataka and Goa as part of the Supreme Court-ordered probe into the illegal mining and export of iron ore from the state?s Belekeri port. While the residence of some aides of the jailed mining magnate and former Karnataka minister G Janardhana Reddy were raided, the companies whose offices were searched include ILC Industries, which is associated with Reddy?s family, Eagle Traders, SB Logistics, Swastik Traders and Shree Mallikarjuna Shipping.
The agency said that it has filed five cases and one preliminary enquiry against firms and exporters in connection with the illegal excavation of 50.79 lakh tonnes of iron ore worth R2,500 crore and its export from Belekeri.
The searches were carried out in Bangalore, Karwar, Hospet and Goa.
Last week, the Supreme court had accepted the report of the Central Empowered Committee and ordered the CBI to investigate the illegal excavation, transport and export of the ore from Belekeri port between January 1, 2009, and May 31, 2010.
The investigation would also cover the illegal export of eight lakh tonnes of iron ore, which had been seized by the forest department at the port in March 2010. The court has asked the CBI to probe the role played by the four stevedores, or port service providers, including Adani Enterprises. The company has said that its responsibility was limited only to providing port services and that it did not have any direct or indirect interests in iron ore mining.