Supreme Court dismisses Kumaraswamy plea seeking quashing of proceedings in graft case

The high court had refused to quash the proceedings against him in the matter.

Senior advocate Harin Raval and Additional Advocate General Aman Panwar appeared for the state of Karnataka and opposed Kumaraswamy’s plea in the apex court. The case relates to a private complaint filed by one M S Mahadeva Swamy before the special judge under the Prevention of Corruption Act in Bengaluru seeking prosecution of Kumaraswamy and others.

The complaint alleged that de-notification of two plots of land in Halagevaderahalli Village, Uttarahalli Hobii, Bengaluru South Taluk, during Kumaraswamy’s tenure as chief minister between June 2006 and October 2007, was carried out for pecuniary gains.

On January 18, 2021, the top court had issued notice to the complainant and the Karnataka government on Kumaraswamy’s plea. Kumaraswamy’s counsel had earlier argued that in view of the amendment made in section 19(1)(b) of the Prevention of Corruption Act in 2018, a sanction was required even though the petitioner was not holding the office at the time when the cognisance was taken.

His counsel had submitted that without obtaining the sanction under section 19, no cognisance ought to have been taken and the high court had erred in rejecting the petition filed under section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure.