The Supreme Court on Friday seeks response from the Karnataka government and Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar regarding a petition filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) seeking to reinstate a corruption investigation against Shivakumar.

The CBI has contested the Karnataka High Court's decision to dismiss its petition challenging the Congress-led Karnataka government’s move to withdraw consent for a CBI investigation into corruption allegations against DK Shivakumar.

A Bench comprising Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan issued a notice in the case today.

Significantly, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Basanagouda R Patil (Yatnal) has also contested the High Court's decision, which dismissed his plea to reinstate the CBI investigation, deeming it non-maintainable as the matter pertains to a Centre-State dispute involving a central agency.

In September, the Supreme Court issued notice on Yatnal's appeal against the High Court's ruling, expressing concerns about the court’s approach. Following this, the CBI aligned with Yatnal to challenge the High Court’s verdict.

On September 25, 2019, the BJP-led Karnataka government had granted the CBI permission to file a first information report (FIR) against DK Shivakumar, citing allegations of corruption and possession of disproportionate assets.

Subsequently, Shivakumar filed a writ petition before a single-judge bench of the Karnataka High Court challenging the FIR. This plea was dismissed on April 4, 2023, prompting Shivakumar to appeal before a Division Bench.

In May 2023, the Congress came to power in Karnataka, and on November 28, the new government withdrew the consent previously given to the CBI for the investigation. By then, Shivakumar had also been appointed Deputy Chief Minister.

This revocation of consent was subsequently challenged by both the CBI and BJP leader Basanagouda R Patil (Yatnal) in the High Court. They also contested the State’s December 2023 decision to refer the allegations against Shivakumar to the Karnataka Lokayukta for investigation.

The Karnataka High Court dismissed these petitions on August 29, leading Yatnal and the CBI to file appeals with the Supreme Court.