Big setback for corrupt Congress: BJP on SC's dismissal of Shivakumar's plea against CBI FIR

The BJP on Monday said the Supreme Court’s dismissal of Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar’s plea challenging a CBI FIR against him in a corruption case was a big setback to the Congress.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) 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.

Reacting to the top court’s decision, BJP national spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla said, “A big setback for the corrupt Congress. INC means I need corruption, not Indian national Congress.”

He accused the Congress and other members of the opposition INDIA bloc, including the RJD and the AAP, of levelling baseless allegations against the CBI, Enforcement Directorate and other probe agencies and said that they should stop playing the “victim card”.

“D K Shivakumar’s plea has been dismissed. Will they blame the Supreme Court? Will they say democracy is under threat,” Poonawalla said.

“When the Supreme Court gives a favourable verdict, they say the judiciary is fine and fair, otherwise they start abusing institutions of the country. Now it’s the Supreme Court which has said it will not quash the CBI’s disproportionate assets case (against Karnataka deputy CM),” he said.

Hearing Shivakumar’s plea, the Supreme Court said it was not inclined to interfere with the Karnataka High Court order dated October 19, 2023, which had dismissed his petition challenging the sanction granted by the state government to the CBI to file the FIR against him.

The high court had directed the CBI to conclude the investigation in the case and file a report within three months.