Month after arrest in Bengaluru realtor murder case, BJP MLA Byrathi Basavaraj gets conditional bail

Incidentally, the KCOCA matter was listed before the Supreme Court for hearing this week but was adjourned on three dates without a hearing.

Eighteen other accused in the case are before the Karnataka High Court for default bail on account of the CID chargesheet being filed after the mandatory 90-day period (while the KCOCA law, which mandates 180 days, was still alive in the case).

Bikla Shiva, 44, was hacked to death outside his house on a public street near Halasuru Lake on the evening of July 15, 2025, by a gang of armed assailants. The murder is alleged to be linked to a property dispute dating back to February 2025 between two groups staking claim to a property in Kithaganur in east Bengaluru.

Basavaraj, the MLA of the K R Pura constituency in east Bengaluru, is alleged to be closely linked to a gang that operates in the real estate sector in the region. Members of the gang are accused in the murder case. Shiva had also filed police complaints about receiving threats from the MLA over property disputes.

No evidence presented of direct links of MLA to murder, says court

The special court on Thursday stated that the death threats claimed to have been received by Shiva cannot be considered to be a dying declaration as argued by the special public prosecutor (SPP).

“In my humble opinion, the said aspect cannot be accepted and certainly the submission that the complaint dated 18.02.2025 itself would lead to a dying declaration is not the correct proposition of law for the reason that immediately thereafter the deceased was not murdered nor he was on a deathbed while lodging the aforesaid complaint,” judge Santhosh Gajanan Bhat ruled.

The special court also considered statements given by two key accused, Kiran K  and Vimal Raj, who claimed that they were embroiled in the crime on account of the assurance of legal support from an advocate, A G Ajeeth Kumar (who has also been arrested), and political support from Basavaraj.

“Though the aforesaid statements seems to be attractive at the first instance, it is always relevant to note that confession statement of a co-accused is a very weak type of evidence and at best it can only lend assurance to the case of the prosecution and nothing more than that can be referred,” the judge stated.

“Apart from the aforesaid self-serving confession statement, there are no materials to indicate the positive overt-act at this juncture accused persons had the blessings of the present petitioner herein,” the special court ruled.

The special court also noted that evidence produced by the CID in the form of details of a joint trip taken by two of the main accused in the murder case, Jagadish P and Kumar, with Basavaraj to Prayagraj for the Kumbh Mela in February 2025, was not valid as no murder conspiracy was hatched at the time.

“The other limb of submissions that tower location of the petitioner was seen in the vicinity of accused No.1 Jagadish and accused No.20 Ajith at the time of attending Kumbh Mela at Prayagraj on 12.02.2025 would not be of much help to the prosecution for the reason that at that point of time even as per their own case no criminal conspiracy was hatched,” the court said.

The SPP contended in court that Basavaraj had not explained his association with the key accused and that the MLA had warned police officers “during the course of his custodial interrogation that he would take necessary action against the officials when his party comes to power in this state”, the special court noted.

The senior counsel for Basavaraj contended that he was only acquainted with the accused and that “no electronic evidence of any kind or CDR messages or any communication between the petitioner and other accused persons just prior to the incident on 15.07.2025 is produced by the prosecution,” the court noted.

The SPP had also argued during the bail hearing that four arrested persons from Malur in the Kolar district of Karnataka, who allegedly executed Shiva’s murder, were present in Bengaluru on February 4, 2025, for Basavaraj’s birthday celebration. The SPP argued that the four men, allegedly hired by the associates of the MLA, were not constituents of the MLA for them to be present at his birthday celebrations.

Basavaraj’s bail conditions

The special court ordered Basavaraj’s release on bail upon executing a personal bond of Rs 2,00,000 with two sureties of the same amount, subject to specified conditions.

Among the conditions are that the MLA should appear before the investigating agency as and when called by them and render full co-operation, and that he should not leave the court jurisdiction or travel abroad without obtaining written permission from the court.

KCOCA matter in SC

In January, the CID unit had approached the Supreme Court seeking a stay on the Karnataka High Court order to drop KCOCA charges against Basavaraj and 19 others in the Bikla Shiva murder case.

The Supreme Court had not granted a stay but instead ruled on January 20 that “the order of the high court shall not be relied upon as a binding precedent” while adjourning the plea of the CID for a full hearing on April 15.

However, the CID moved the Supreme Court again on February 23, seeking an early hearing of the plea for a stay on the high court order. The Supreme Court had provided a tentative date of March 10 for an early hearing.