Case against DK Shivakumar: SC questions BJP MLA Yatnal over appeal against HC order
New Delhi, Jan 29 (PTI): The Supreme Court on Wednesday questioned BJP MLA Basangouda R Patil (Yatnal) over his challenge over the withdrawal of consent to the CBI for probing the disproportionate assets case against Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar.
A bench of Justices Surya Kant and N Kotiswar Singh told senior advocate K Parmeswar, appearing for BJP MLA, it appeared the petitioner was before the Supreme Court for political mileage.
"Why are you here? For political mileage?" asked Justice Surya Kant.
Parmeswar said the state government was yet to file its counter affidavit and the issue was not political as CBI also filed an appeal.
"This is the disproportionate asset case where the state government withdrew the general consent to prevent the CBI from probing the person, who is now deputy chief minister of the state. With all due respect, this can't happen," he submitted.
Advocate Kanu Aggarwal, appearing for CBI, said the court may permit the agency to file submission on the question of law in the matter.
The bench adjourned the matter owing to paucity of time.
On September 17, last year, the top court sought the responses of Shivakumar and the state government on a plea against withdrawal of consent to the CBI for probing the disproportionate assets case against him.
Patil has challenged the Karnataka High Court’s order of August 29, 2024, rejecting his plea against withdrawal of consent.
The high court held as "non-maintainable" a petition filed by the CBI challenging the decision of Karnataka’s Congress government to withdraw the consent to probe the case.
It dismissed the plea challenging the state government's December 26, 2023 order referring the Rs 74.93 crore DA case to the Lokayukta for investigation.
The CBI had alleged that Shivakumar amassed assets disproportionate to his known sources of income between 2013 and 2018. He was a minister in the previous Congress government during this period.
Later, when the BJP came to power in the state, its government granted sanction to the CBI to prosecute Shivakumar.
The current Karnataka government headed by Siddaramaiah had on November 23, 2023 held that the previous BJP government's move to give consent to the CBI to investigate the DA case against Shivakumar was not in accordance with law and decided to withdraw the sanction.
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Family of injured driver in murder of Suvendu's aide seeks exemplary punishment
Kolkata (PTI): The family of Buddhabeb Bera, the driver injured in the shooting that killed BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari's close aide Chandranath Rath, demanded exemplary punishment for those responsible and urged the new government to ensure such incidents do not happen in West Bengal.
Rath was shot dead in Madhyamgram near Kolkata on Wednesday night, triggering a political storm in the state. Bera, who was driving the vehicle at the time of the attack, sustained gunshot wounds and is currently undergoing treatment at a private hospital.
Family members said they learned about the incident through television and immediately left for Kolkata.
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"We came to know from TV reports that my nephew had been shot. We still do not know who carried out the attack or why it happened," Buddhabeb's uncle Biswajit Bera said.
"Our only wish now is that he recovers and returns home safely," he added.
Buddhabeb, 25, hails from Majnaberia village in the Chandipur police station area in Purba Medinipur district.
According to family members, he mostly stays in Kolkata for work and visits home occasionally during weekends.
Besides his parents, his younger brother, sister-in-law and several relatives have also travelled to Kolkata following the incident.
Demanding strict action against the perpetrators, the uncle said, "We want the government to conduct a proper investigation and identify those directly involved in the crime. They should be given exemplary punishment so that such incidents do not happen again in West Bengal and no other family has to go through this grief."
A neighbour, Ranjana Ghorai, also sought stringent punishment for those behind the attack.
"In our neighbourhood, we call him Sona. We want exemplary punishment for the people responsible for this incident," she said.
Rath's family members have demanded life imprisonment for the accused, while Adhikari has called for capital punishment for those involved in the killing.
