In a significant development, the Supreme Court has quashed the 2018 money laundering case against Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar. The case, stemming from the discovery of unaccounted cash in the Congress leader’s Delhi residence in August 2017, has been a subject of legal contention for several years.

“The proceedings initiated against appellants under PMLA are hereby quashed,” declared the top court, delivering a decisive verdict in favor of Shivakumar.

Shivakumar had appealed to the apex court against the High Court’s 2019 decision, which had upheld Enforcement Directorate (ED) summons issued to him in connection with the alleged money laundering case.

The Supreme Court clarified that the question of whether criminal conspiracy under IPC Section 120B can independently constitute a predicate offense for invoking the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) has already been settled by the court. However, it noted that a review against this order is pending, indicating the possibility of future legal proceedings.

The case against Shivakumar was initially based on a charge sheet filed by the Income Tax department in 2018 before a special court in Bengaluru. It alleged tax evasion and ‘hawala’ transactions worth crores of rupees, implicating Shivakumar and his alleged associate SK Sharma.

The Income Tax department accused the Karnataka deputy CM of engaging in transactions involving substantial amounts of unaccounted money through hawala channels, with the assistance of three other accused individuals.

Shivakumar was granted bail in connection with the money laundering case by the Delhi High Court on October 23, 2019, with the stipulation that he must not leave the country without court permission.