Jailed mining baron Gali Janardhana Reddy and his associates virtually ruled the roost in Bellary district in 2008 and 2009 when iron ore mining was at its peak.

The CBI, which is probing the illegal iron ore mining activities in Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh, has said that “Reddy, who was then Tourism minister and also minister in charge of Bellary district, wielded considerable political and muscle power and thereby made forceful entry into the mining leases owned by somebody else and indulged in extracting iron ore and transporting it.”