The Telangana High Court on Friday dismissed a petition filed by senior IAS officer Y Srilakhsmi seeking discharge from the high-profile Obulapuram Mining Company (OMC) illegal iron ore mining case, thereby clearing the way for her to face trial in the special CBI court.
A division bench of the High Court, which had earlier reserved its verdict, rejected Srilakhsmi’s criminal revision plea. The officer, who belongs to the Andhra Pradesh cadre, had challenged her prosecution in the case, in which she has been arrayed as Accused No. 6 (A-6).
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has accused Srilakhsmi of misusing her official position during her tenure as Secretary of the Industries and Commerce Department in 2007, allegedly favouring OMC in granting mining leases. The charges were filed under provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act.
In her defence, Srilakhsmi argued that the mining lease to OMC had been provisionally granted a year before she assumed charge and that she had no role in the alleged irregularities. Her earlier attempt to obtain a discharge from the CBI special court was denied.
In November 2022, the Telangana High Court had initially ruled in her favour by discharging her from the case. However, the CBI challenged that decision in the Supreme Court, which in May 2025 remanded the matter back to the High Court with instructions to hear it afresh and deliver a verdict within three months.
The case has seen multiple high-profile developments. On May 6, the special CBI court in Hyderabad convicted former Karnataka Minister Gali Janardhan Reddy and three others, sentencing them to seven years of rigorous imprisonment. However, the High Court on June 11 suspended the conviction and granted bail to Reddy and the co-accused.
