The Supreme Court on Tuesday dismissed a 2018 money laundering case against Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister, DK Shivakumar. The case, which had its roots in the discovery of unaccounted cash in Shivakumar's flats in Delhi back in August 2017, was brought to a close by a two-judge bench comprising Justices Aniruddha Bose and Bela M Trivedi.

The court's decision was grounded in the argument that the proceedings against Shivakumar under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) were not in accordance with the law and rules. The critical observation made by the court was the failure of the investigating agency to successfully establish a direct link between the source of the recovered cash and any money laundering activities.

Shivakumar, who had previously moved the Supreme Court against the Karnataka High Court's 2019 order that refused to quash Enforcement Directorate (ED) summons issued to him in connection to the alleged money laundering case, found relief in the recent decision. The case had garnered attention after the Income Tax Department conducted raids on several premises belonging to Shivakumar in 2017, subsequently leading to an investigation by the ED.

The Central Bureau of Investigation, based on the findings of the ED probe, sought approval from the Karnataka government to register an FIR against the Congress leader. In September 2019, Shivakumar was arrested by the ED, and approximately a week later, an FIR was lodged.

The Deputy Chief Minister then challenged the FIR in the Karnataka High Court, setting the stage for the legal battle that has now seen a resolution in the Supreme Court's recent dismissal of the case.