Bengaluru, Oct 23: Former Prime Minister H DDeve Gowda and ex-Chief Ministers H D Kumaraswamy andSiddaramaiah welcomed the Delhi HighCourt order on Wednesday granting bail to Congress leader D K Shivakumar in a money laundering case, filed by the Enforcement Directorate.

As the news about Shivakumar getting bail broke, his supporters and Congress workers celebrated by bursting crackers and distributing sweets in Ramanagara, Belagavi, Tumakuru, Kanakapura, Mandya and near his Bengaluru residence.

"Delhi High Court granting bail to D K Shivakumar has increased common man's trust in country's judicial system. I welcome the court's decision," Gowda tweeted.

Shivakumar, a seven-time MLA, was arrested by the EDon September 3 under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

"Getting bail from Delhi high court is happy news," Siddaramaiah told reporters at Bagalkote.

He alleged that Shivakumar was being politically targeted.

"...let them (ED) investigate, but sending to jail duringinvestigation is not right. On proving to be guilty one can besent to jail, but sending while the investigation is still onis not right. Vengeance politics is not right..," he added.

The 57-year-old Shivakumar is under judicial custody and presently lodged in Tihar jail.

Both the Congress and Shivakumar have claimed he was beingtargeted by the BJP-led government at the Centre by "misusing" investigating agencies.

"Delhi High Court granting bail to D K Shivakumar is a matter of happiness. On Monday I had met Shivakumar and tried to boost his courage, and expressed hope about him getting bail," Kumaraswamy tweeted.

The JD(S) leader who met Shivakumar at Tihar jail on Monday had said that the Congress leader was "bold" to fight "vengeance politics".

Shivakumar and Kumaraswamy, both Vokkaliga strong men, have been bitter political opponents in the old Mysuru region,until they came together for the formation of Congress-JD(S) coalition government, after 2018 assembly polls.

Shivakumar was a key minister in the Kumaraswamy cabinet and played a major rule in the stability of the coalition government until it collapsed in July, following resignation of several MLAs of the two parties, eventually leading to installation of the BJP government.

His arrest had lead to widespread protests, especially in Ramanagara, Bengaluru rural, Mandya and other parts of old Mysuru region.

It had even taken a caste colour with thousands of people belonging to the Vokkaliga community taking out a rally recently in Bengaluru protesting the arrest and expressing solidarity with him.

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Ahmedabad, Dec 8: A 42-year-old tantrik arrested for allegedly conspiring to murder a businessman died in police custody in Gujarat's Ahmedabad on Sunday after admitting to killing 12 people by giving them drinks laced with a chemical, police said.

The Sarkhej police arrested Navalsinh Chavda around 1 am on December 3 when he was on his way to commit the crime after his partner for a taxi business with whom he shared the plan tipped off the police, an official said.

The police secured Chavda's remand till 3 pm on December 10 for further probe into his occult practices and possible involvement in human sacrifices, he said.

"Around 10 am on Sunday, Chavda fell ill and was rushed to the civil hospital in an ambulance, but the doctors declared him dead on arrival. The accused confessed to 12 murders during interrogation, and all deaths had occurred due to consumption of sodium nitrite," the official said.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Shivam Verma said the accused confessed to having committed 12 murders by making his victims consume sodium nitrite dissolved in water during occult rituals.

Chavda admitted to having murdered a man in Ahmedabad, six in Surendranagar, including three members of his family, three in Rajkot, and one each in Wankaner (Morbi district) and Anjar (Kutch district), Verma said.

He said the accused confessed to having murdered a man whose body was found in the Aslali area of Ahmedabad in August 2021 in what appeared to be a road accident. A post-mortem later suggested it to be a case of death by poisoning.

The probe has also revealed that the accused had similarly killed his grandmother around 14 years ago and his mother and uncle a year ago, Verma said.

According to the police, Chavda procured sodium nitrite, a chemical used for dry cleaning, from a laboratory in his hometown, Surendranagar.

Due to poisoning, several of his victims died of heart attacks, while the nature of the deaths of a few other victims was a matter of investigation, the official said.

Chavda had found out about the chemical from another tantrik. The substance would take effect 15 to 20 minutes after consumption and cause heart attack, etc., leading to death, he said.

The accused called himself a "bhuvaji" and proclaimed that he had the power to perform magic and miracles. He also had an ashram at Wadhwan in Surendranagar where he practised black magic, police said.

He would offer to multiply his victims' wealth or solve their problems, they said.

The police had recovered incriminating evidence from Chavda's vehicle, including items used in rituals and white powder.