HC refers petitions to larger bench

Bengaluru: The Karnataka High Court on Friday referred the petitions challenging the withdrawal of consent for the CBI probe in disproportionate assets case against Deputy CM D.K. Shivakumar to a larger bench. A bench, headed by Justice Krishna S. Dixit, passed the order, noting that the provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act, the Income Tax Act and the Prevention of Money Laundering Act have to be analysed.

The case is first of its kind in the state and the enormity of legal issues required consideration by a larger bench, it said. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has challenged in the High Court the decision of the Congress-led state government to withdraw the consent to the agency had to conduct the investigation into the case.

A BJP MLA had also submitted a petition in this regard. The case was handed over to the Lokayukta for investigation following the withdrawal of the consent to the CBI. Reacting to the development, Shivakumar stated that the CBI has the right to submit the application. “We will place our arguments.

We respect the courts... the court will decide (on the matter). It is a vendetta politics,” he said. Shivakumar had earlier said that the BJP leaders were trying to finish him off politically. The CBI had started a probe against Shivakumar over an alleged DA case in 2020 on charges that he had amassed properties worth Rs 74 crore between 2013 and 2018, which were disproportionate against his known sources of income. The then BJP-led Karnataka government headed by B.S. Yediyurappa had handed over the case to the CBI.