"Why Are You Being Used...": Supreme Court Asks Probe Agency In Mysuru Land Scam

The Supreme Court has reprimanded the Enforcement Directorate - warning it to steer clear of political face-offs - as it rejected a summons to Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah's wife - Parvati - in connection with alleged Mysuru Urban Development Authority, or MUDA, land scam.

A bench led by Chief Justice BR Gavai upheld a Karnataka High Court order Monday morning and made sharp observations about the federal agency's role in this matter, including warning Additional Solicitor General SV Raju, appearing for the ED, to not "force us to say anything".

"Mr Raju," the bench said, "Please don't ask us to open our mouth... otherwise we will be forced to make some harsh comments about the ED. Unfortunately I have some experience in Maharashtra... let political battles be fought before the electorate. Why are you being used..."

Left with no room to manoeuvre, Mr Raju said the ED would withdraw its plea, but fired a parting shot, telling the court, "But let this not be treated as a precedent..."

On the ED's plea the court then said it did not find any flaw in the ruling by a single-judge bench of the High Court and said, "We reject the petition in view of the facts and circumstances.

The Chief Justice also drily noted, "We should thank the ASG for avoiding harsh comments."

The ED had called the Chief Minister's wife for questioning in connection with alleged illegal allotment of plots by the MUDA, a case in which Siddaramaiah was named as Accused No 1.

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah (File)

The ED had argued then that the Chief Minister's wife was the second accused in the original case - the MUDA land scam case - after Siddaramaiah, and that she may have received proceeds of crime.

READ | Relief For Siddaramaiah's Wife In MUDA Case, ED Summons Cancelled

In response Parvati pointed out she had given up the plots and had not made any gains, i.e., 'proceeds of the crime'. She also argued the ED was trying to probe an issue already being investigated.

READ | 'No Evidence Against Siddaramaiah In MUDA Case': Lokayukta

The original inquiries were led by the Karnataka branch of anti-corruption watchdog Lokayukta, which last month said there is a "lack of evidence to conduct an investigation" against the Chief Minister and his wife, and noted also the complaint seemed "unsuitable for criminal charges".

The relief to Siddaramaiah and his wife aside, the court's sharp observations have been seen as significant by many, especially by those not with or aligned to the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party.

Opposition parties and leaders, including the Congress and Mamata Banerjee's Trinamool, and Arvind Kejriwal's Aam Aadmi Party, have routinely accused the BJP of using federal agencies like the Enforcement Directorate to target and harass rivals, particularly before an election.

Trinamool leader Abhishek Banerjee - whose party is prepping for what will likely be a volatile campaign and election next year - doubled down on those accusations last week at a meeting of opposition parties before Parliament's monsoon session kicked off today.

"BJP is using E-squared - i.e., Election Commission and Enforcement Directorate - to target voters and opposition leaders," he thundered. The EC reference was to the contentious 'special intensive revision' of voter lists in Bihar before the November election, an exercise the opposition has said is meant to disenfranchise communities that traditionally vote for it.

The government has, just as routinely, rejected these claims, insisting the actions of the ED, or any other federal agency, are independent, transparent, and targeted only at lawbreakers.

READ | "Only 3% Of Cases...": PM's Jab Ar Opposition's Probe Agency Claims

In April last year Prime Minister Narendra Modi pointed out that only three per cent of the ED's cases are linked to politicians. "The remaining 97 per cent cases are linked to officials and criminals," the Prime Minister said in an exclusive interaction with a Hindi news outlet.

READ | 1% Conviction Against Politicians Leaves Probe Agency Red-Faced

Nevertheless, the ED continues to face sharp questions about its independence and efficacy; in March this year the government told Parliament the agency's conviction rate, in terms of cases against politicians, is less than one per cent, or just two convictions, over the past decade.