Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah moves Supreme Court to quash criminal case for 2022 protest march

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has moved the Supreme Court for quashing of a case lodged against him after he participated in a protest march in 2022..He has also sought quashing of a recent Karnataka High Court order asking him to personally appear before the trial court in the case.The Special Leave Petition (SLP), which was filed on Wednesday, is tentatively listed for hearing on February 19 as per the Supreme Court website..In the case dating back to February 2022, Siddaramaiah and others were arrested for holding a protest to demand the resignation and arrest of then Minister KS Eeshwarappa following the death by suicide of contractor Santosh. They had been arrested as a preventive measure.Last week, the High Court refused to quash the proceedings before the trial court against Siddaramaiah and others. He was also directed to appear before the trial court on February 26..In the SLP, Siddaramaiah has argued that none of the ingredients of Section 141 (unlawful assembly) of Indian Penal Code are met in the case. “An assembly of five or more persons will become unlawful only when they have a common object and the said object falls within the categories mentioned as first to fifth in Section 141 IPC. When the common object of the assembly does not fall within any of the five categories specified in Section 141, the said assembly cannot be said to be an unlawful assembly,” the plea states.He further contends that there was no allegation whatsoever that the assembly had led to any violence. The assembly was formed only to demand the resignation of a minister whose name was involved in a suicide case and there was no common object to use or show any criminal force by Siddaramaiah or any other accused, the plea states..Siddaramaiah has also alleged that the complaint could have been filed on the dictates of the complainant's political superiors.It has also been contended that no offence is made out under Section 103 of the Karnataka Police Act, which penalises violations of orders made by commissioners or district magistrates to regulate traffic or preserve law and order in public places. .Thus, Siddaramaiah has sought setting aside of the Karnataka High Court judgment that refused to quash the proceedings pending against him before the trial court.