Karnataka High Court quashes FIR against ED officers probing Valmiki Corporation scam

The Karnataka High Court Friday quashed the first information report (FIR) and consequent proceedings against two Enforcement Directorate (ED) officers who were probing the multi-crore Valmiki Corporation scam

The two ED officers were accused of forcing a senior government official to implicate Chief Minister Siddaramaiah in the Valmiki scam.

Justice M Nagaprasanna closed the case after the complainant in the case told the Court he did not wish to pursue the matter any further.

The Court disposed of the petition filed by the ED officials and said the FIR and resultant proceedings will "stand quashed" after the counsel for Kallesh B, former additional director of the State social welfare department and the original complainant in the case, told the Court that he did not wish to pursue the matter nay further.

Additional Solicitor General SV Raju, who appeared for the central agency, told the Court he had no objection to the complainant asking the matter be closed.

"The learned counsel for the second respondent, who is the complainant, files a memo and the email communication that is indicative of the fact that the complainant does not want to pursue the matter further and would like to withdraw his complaint. In light of the said memo being filed, the crime requires to be obliterated," Justice Nagaprasanna said while quashing the FIR.

Kallesh B, who was summoned by the ED for questioning in the Valmiki Corporation case in July this year, had alleged in his police complaint that during the ED questioning, he was forced to name arrested former Congress minister B Nagendra and Chief Minister Siddaramaiah in the case.

In July this year, Justice Nagaprasanna had passed an interim order staying the FIR against the ED officials.

At the time, the judge had said permitting further proceedings against the officials would mean an abuse of the process of law.

“If the discharge of duties of every officer is investigated like this, then no one will work. Whether it is officers on this side or that side. And anyone who comes out of interrogation will say he was threatened...These innovative filmy style ideas will not be allowed here. Tomorrow, no investigating officer will be safe. You are opening a Pandora's Box,” Justice Nagaprasanna had said at the time.

On July 22, the Bengaluru Police had registered an FIR against the two ED officers Murali Kannan and Manoj Mittal for allegedly forcing the complainant to name Nagendra and Siddaramaiah in the Valmiki scam case.

Nagendra was arrested by the ED on July 12 under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, and was remanded to 14 days of judicial custody.

The alleged scam came to light in May this year after the accounts superintendent of the Karnataka Maharshi Valmiki Scheduled Tribes Development Corporation, Chandrashekhar, died by suicide at his residence. Chandrashekhar left behind a note alleging misappropriation of the welfare funds.

Soon after, the Karnataka government constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the allegations, while the ED began a separate probe.

As per the ED, around ₹90 crore was illegally transferred from the Valmiki Corporation’s bank account to several unauthorised accounts.