Where do I have hawala money?: Karnataka Congress chief DK Shivakumar
Bengaluru(PTI): Karnataka Congress President D K Shivakumar, who is slated to appear before a Delhi court next week in a money laundering case, claimed on Friday that he has no 'hawala money', and the court will decide on the case.
A Delhi court last month summoned him and others in a money laundering case lodged against him in 2018.
Special Judge Vikas Dhull directed Shivakumar to appear on July 1, taking cognisance of a chargesheet filed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) through its Special Public Prosecutor Nitesh Rana against him and others in the case.
"The ED has filed a chargesheet in the court. They had to do it in six months, but after taking years, they have filed the chargesheet now. So, I have been given summons for June 31 (July 1), I will go," Shivakumar told reporters here.
Responding to a question regarding reports about reference to hawala money linked to him in the chargesheet, he said, "Where do I have (hawala money)? Court will decide all those things."
Shivakumar was arrested by the ED in the case on September 3, 2019 and was granted bail by the Delhi High Court on October 23, 2019.
The case is based on a chargesheet filed by the Income Tax Department against Shivakumar and others last year before a special court in Bengaluru on charges of alleged tax evasion and 'hawala' transactions worth crores of rupees.
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SC asks states to treat rising child trafficking cases as grave; seeks coordinated action
New Delhi (PTI): The Supreme Court has voiced grave concern over rising cases of child trafficking, saying gangs are operating across the country and if States and Union territories do not take immediate action, thing will go beyond control.
The court said only the state government and its home department can act vigilantly in this regard.
“As a court we can monitor, but ultimately the action has to be on the part of the state government, the police, and other agencies. Therefore, this is our humble request”, a bench comprising Justices JB Pardiwala and K V Viswanathan said during the hearing of a plea on Wednesday.
The bench was irked over the "lackadaisical" approach of several states and UTs in implementing a 2025 judgment aimed at dismantling organised trafficking networks.
Justice Viswanathan said the retrieval of children in some cases proves the problem can be tackled, but it requires a level of political and administrative will which is lacking at present.
The verdict, delivered on April 15, 2025, had mandated several institutional reforms, including completion of trials in trafficking cases within six months on a day-to-day basis.
It had also directed strengthening of Anti-Human Trafficking Units (AHTUs) and improving investigation standards.
Besides asking for setting up of state-level committees to monitor vulnerable trafficking hotspots, it had asked the authorities to treat missing children cases as trafficking unless proven otherwise.
Earlier, the bench had termed the compliance reports filed by a few states as "nothing but an eye wash."
On Wednesday, the bench noted that Madhya Pradesh, Goa, Haryana, Lakshadweep, Mizoram, Odisha, and Punjab had still failed to file reports in the prescribed format.
When the home secretary of Madhya Pradesh offered an apology for the lapse, the bench granted a "final opportunity" but warned that continued failure would lead to states being officially branded as "defaulting".
The bench noted that at least 15 states are yet to constitute review committees mandated to identify and monitor trafficking-prone areas.
The matter will now be heard on April 29.
