The Supreme Court of India delivered a significant ruling on Tuesday, March 5, by quashing the proceedings initiated against Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar in relation to the 2018 money laundering case. This decision marks a pivotal moment in the legal proceedings surrounding Shivakumar, providing clarity and resolution to a case that has garnered substantial attention.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) had registered a Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) case against Shivakumar in 2018 and arrested him on September 3, 2019. Subsequently, the Delhi high court granted him bail on October 23, 2019.In August 2017, the Income Tax department had alleged that a sum of Rs 8.59 crore was seized from the Karnataka deputy chief minister’s Safdarjung Enclave apartment in Delhi, based on which a case was framed by the ED and he was arrested. Over the years, multiple properties of Shivakumar were searched on various occasions by the ED and Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and his daughter Aishwarya Shivakumar, mother D.K. Gowramma and wife Usha Shivakumar were also issued summons by the ED.
Another corruption case against Mr Shivakumar is at the centre of a massive political row in Karnataka at this point. The Siddaramaiah-led government recently withdrew the sanction to CBI to probe the case. The central agency, which got a go-ahead in the case before the Congress came to power in Karnataka, has now challenged the new government's move in court.