The Karnataka High Court on Thursday rejected a batch of pleas challenging the state government's move to withdraw consent for a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) against Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar, in a disproportionate assets case.

The court dismissed petitions filed by the central probe agency and the Opposition BJP MLA Basangouda Patil Yatnal, who had challenged the Siddaramaiah government's decision to withdraw consent for a CBI probe into corruption allegations against Shivakumar.

Last week, the Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister appeared before the Lokayukta Police for a probe in connection with a disproportionate assets (DA) case against him.

In February, the Lokayukta Police filed a case against Shivakumar after the ruling Congress government in the state withdrew consent to the CBI to investigate the DA case against him in November 2023, and referred the case to it.

The Supreme Court, on July 15, rejected a petition by DK Shivakumar challenging the FIR lodged by the CBI against him, saying it cannot interfere with the High Court order.

The High Court, in October 2023, rejected his plea and also directed the federal agency to complete the probe into the case and file the report within three months.

The CBI filed the FIR against Shivakumar in September 2020, in which it alleged that he amassed assets disproportionate to his known sources of income between 2013 and 2018. He was a minister in the then-Congress government during that period.

Source: India Today