SC Slams ED Over Summons, Grants Breather to Siddaramaiah’s Wife in MUDA Case

The Supreme Court has provided significant relief to Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah amidst his leadership conflict with Deputy D.K. Shivakumar. The court dismissed an appeal by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) against a Karnataka High Court ruling. This ruling had nullified summons issued to Siddaramaiah's wife, BM Parvathi, concerning the Mysore Urban Development Authority (MUDA) alternative site allotment case.

The bench, led by Chief Justice of India BR Gavai and Justice K Vinod Chandran, upheld the High Court's decision from March 7. They emphasized that political disputes should be resolved publicly rather than in courtrooms. The judges expressed unease over the ED's involvement in such political matters.

Supreme Court's Stance on Political Battles

"Unfortunately, I have some experience in Maharashtra. Please do not force us to say something. Otherwise, we have to say something very harsh about the ED. Let political battles be fought among the electorate. Why are you being used for it?" remarked the Bench during the proceedings.

Additional Solicitor General (ASG) SV Raju represented the ED and offered to withdraw their appeal but requested that it not set a precedent. Despite this offer, the court rejected the plea, affirming no error in the High Court's reasoning.

Details of the MUDA Case

The case involves allegations of irregularities in site allocations by MUDA to Parvathi. It was claimed she received over three acres of land as a 'gift' from her brother Mallikarjuna Swamy after he purchased it post-de-notification. MUDA developed this land despite its private ownership status.

Parvathi later sought compensation and allegedly received 14 developed plots in a prime area under a 50:50 scheme, which were reportedly more valuable than the original land. She eventually surrendered this land back to authorities.

Karnataka HC's Previous Decision

Justice M Nagaprasanna of Karnataka HC had previously quashed ED summons issued to Parvathi and urban development minister Byrathi Suresh. Although Suresh was not accused, he was sought for questioning regarding this case.

The Supreme Court concluded there was no fault in how the single-judge bench approached this matter, leading them to dismiss the appeal entirely. They also thanked ASG Raju for sparing them from making harsh comments about ED's actions.