Both these petitions takes exception to the impugned order at Annexure-A dated 20.05.2024 passed by the 2nd respondent - Deputy Inspector General of Police (EO), CID, Bangalore, granting approval / permission to the 3rd respondent – Deputy Superintendent of Police / Investigating Officer to invoke Section 3 of the Karnataka Control of Organized Crimes Act, 2000 (for short ‘the KCOCA’) against Sri. Krishna Ramesh @ Shriki, the petitioner in W.P.No.15943/2024 as well as against one Robin Khandelwal, son of Sri.Naresh Kumar Khandelwal, petitioner in W.P.No.15622/2024.

2. Briefly stated, the facts giving rise to the present petitions are as under:-

On 17.07.2017, pursuant to the complaint lodged by one Harish B.V., the Director of Uno Coin Technologies Pvt. Ltd., the Tumakuru Police Authorities registered criminal proceedings in Crime No.85/2017 against unknown persons for offences punishable under Sections 66, 66(c), 67, and 68 of the Information Technology Act, 2000 (for short ‘the I.T.Act’) r/w Section 420 of IPC before the Magistrate. The said case was transferred to the Cyber Economics Narcotics Police Station, Tumakuru, for further investigation.

2.1 On 13.09.2019, the I.O. s