MUDA case: SC unequivocally cleared our names, says Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah

Bengaluru: Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Monday said the Supreme Court’s rejection of the ED’s appeal to investigate his wife in the MUDA case was a “resounding slap on the face” of the union government’s “vendetta politics”. 

The CM also demanded a public apology from BJP and JD(S) leaders for “fabricated allegations at me
and my family”. 

The SC verdict has “not only exposed the malice behind the case, but has also unequivocally cleared our names of all baseless allegations,” he said in a statement. 

“Throughout my long political career, I have always bowed before the Constitution and the rule of law. This verdict upholds and protects that very belief. Unable to defeat me politically, BJP and its allies stooped to misusing constitutional agencies like CBI and ED to fabricate baseless cases against my wife and harass my family,” he said. “The mental agony we have been subjected to will forever remain a painful chapter in our lives.”

The chief minister said the verdict restored faith in the judiciary “especially among all those who have fallen victim to BJP’s political witch-hunt using IT, CBI and ED over the past 10–11 years”.

In the wake of the SC verdict, he said Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah “must wake up and stop weaponising” agencies. “It is time they restore the autonomy of these institutions and cleanse themselves of the sins of political misuse,” he said. 

Siddaramaiah’s Legal Advisor A S Ponnanna maintained that there was no foul play by the CM’s family in the MUDA case.

“The court has made it clear that ED shouldn’t be used for politics,” he said. “If BJP has any morality left, they should at least stop speaking about this.” 

He also pointed out that there were no proceeds of any crime after the chief minister’s wife B M Parvathi returned the 14 sites that were allotted to her by MUDA. “There’s no money laundering, which the SC has upheld. This is now the law of the land.”