Karnataka High Court issues notice to ED on plea filed by MLA Veerendra’s wife challenging his arrest  

The High Court of Karnataka on Wednesday ordered the issue of notice to the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on a petition questioning the legality of the arrest of K.C. Veerendra, MLA for Chitradurga, in connection with a money laundering case in connection with the alleged illegal online and offline betting.

Justice M.I. Arun passed the order on a petition filed by R.D. Chaithra, the wife of Mr. Veerendra. The MLA was arrested at Gangtok in Sikkim on August 23 when he was in Sikkim along with his associates on a business trip to lease a casino, and was later produced before a magistrate court here.

Criminal cases booked

It has been alleged in the petition that some of the criminal cases registered way back in 2015, 2016 and 2022, which were among the First Information Reports registered by the State police in connection with instances of illegal betting that were relied upon by the ED, among other cases, were not in existence at present.

The ED, it has been alleged in the petition, is illegally usurping the powers vested with the State police and is encroaching upon the territory of the State police for manufacturing and investigating an offence, which is directly in conflict with the federal structure and constitutional scheme.

Also, it has been contended that the grounds of arrest mentioned in the arrest memo were vague, generic, and formulaic, contrary to the requirements of law as laid down by the apex court.

Pointing out that three of the criminal cases cited by the ED have been closed as per the law, it has been claimed in the petition that not only has the ED failed to obtain the status of these three criminal cases, but has gone ahead with portraying Mr. Veerendra as a habitual offender in illegal gambling cases.

₹12 crore seized

The ED had seized ₹12 crore in cash (including about ₹1 crore in foreign currency), gold jewellery worth ₹6 crore, and silver weighing about 10 kg, along with four vehicles during searches conducted on August 22 at multiple locations in various States.