Karnataka High Court Recalls Order Allowing Complaint Against Mallikarjun Kharge Family Trust To Proceed, Will Hear Them
The Karnataka High Court on Friday (October 16) allowed an application seeking recall of its earlier order in the Siddhartha Vihar Trust land allotment case and decided to hear Mallikarjun Kharge and other family members before proceeding further in the matter.
A Single Bench of Justice M. Nagaprasanna passed the order on an application filed by the Kharge family, who contended that they had not been heard before the earlier order was passed.
The Court recalled its earlier order and directed that Respondents 2 to 6, including Kharge, the former Union Minister and current Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, be heard in the matter.
While dictating the operative portion of the order, the Court stated:
“The application seeking recalling of order stands allowed. The order dated… stands recalled to hear respondents 2-6. For further hearing on 30th October. Till such time, the concerned court [trial court] shall hold its hands.”
The trial court proceedings will accordingly remain on hold until the next hearing on October 30.
The earlier order had permitted a private complaint concerning alleged irregularities in the allotment of a civic amenity site to Siddhartha Vihar Trust to proceed. The Trust counts Kharge and his family members among its trustees.
The High Court had held that a defective affidavit accompanying a complaint was a curable defect under Section 175(3) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), and that such a defect could not be used to avoid the statutory procedure for investigation.
The Court had observed:
“The allegations may ultimately prove true; they may equally prove unfounded… What cannot be countenanced is that allegations which, by their very nature, require investigation should remain uninvestigated merely because an affidavit accompanying the complaint suffered from a defect capable of cure. The truth cannot be permitted to become a casualty at the altar of an imperfect verification clause.”
The earlier order was passed while considering a challenge to a trial court order refusing further investigation into allegations concerning the land allotment.
The private complaint was filed by the president of the Lanchamukta Karnataka Vedike organisation, who alleged irregularities in the allotment of a civic amenity site to the Trust by the Bengaluru Development Authority (BDA).
According to the complaint, the Trust allegedly represented itself as an institution managed by members of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes to secure a civic amenity site under the SC quota in Banashankari 6th Stage. It was further alleged that the Trust obtained a 50 per cent concession in the lease amount and subsequently secured an alternative site in BTM 4th Stage, allegedly valued at around ₹130 crore, while retaining the land despite not undertaking construction for three years.
The complainant had approached the jurisdictional police, the Lokayukta's Superintendent of Police and the Governor seeking action, including sanction under Section 17A of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988. He later filed a private complaint seeking an investigation under Section 175(3) of the BNSS, alleging that the authorities had failed to act.
The trial court had declined to proceed with the request for investigation under Section 175(3) on the ground that the complainant's affidavit did not contain the requisite verification. It instead directed that the complainant be examined and a court inquiry be conducted under Section 223 of the BNSS.
The complainant then approached the High Court challenging that order.
The Kharge family subsequently sought recall of the High Court's order, contending that they had not been heard before it was passed.
The High Court has now recalled that order to hear Respondents 2 to 6. The matter is listed for further hearing on October 30.