K’taka HC dismisses Shivakumar’s petition challenging sanction to prosecute him

Bengaluru: The High Court of Karnataka on Thursday dismissed the petition by state Congress president D K Shivakumar challenging the sanction given by the State Government to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for prosecuting him.

Following a request by the central agency, the State Government had given the sanction on September 25, 2019, based on which it had filed an FIR against him on October 3, 2020.

Shivakumar had challenged both the sanction and the FIR in two separate petitions before the High Court.

The Income Tax Department had conducted a search and seizure operation in the offices and residence of Shivakumar in 2017, based on which the Enforcement Directorate started its own probe against him.

The CBI sought sanction from the State Government to file an FIR against him, based on the ED investigation. The sanction was granted on September 25, 2019 and the FIR was filed by the CBI on October 3, 2020.