ED gets D K Shivakumar's custody till Sept 13

Agencies

September 4, 2019

New Delhi, Sept 4: A Delhi court on Wednesday sent Karnataka's senior Congress leader and former Minister D K Shivakumar into the custody of Enforcement Directorate till September 13 in a money laundering case lodged against him.

Special Judge Ajay Kumar Kuhar granted nine days of custodial interrogation of the Karnataka's strongman, though the agency sought 14 days, saying the accused has remained evasive and non-cooperative in four days of questioning at its headquarters here in Delhi.

Arrested a day before, Shivakumar was produced before the court here this afternoon, after taking him from RML Hospital where he spent his night due to medical complications, including varying blood pressure.

After two hours of lengthy arguments from the prosecution and the defence, the court rejected his plea for conditional bail. It allowed him to meet his family members for 15 minutes. However, his request to issue a message to the people of Karnataka not to create any law and order problem was not allowed by the court.

Senior advocate A M Singhvi and Dayan Krishnan, appearing for Shivakumar questioned the ED's plea for 14 days of custody remand. They said the whole case was based upon Income Tax searches which were carried out on in August, 2017, which finally resulted into an I-T complaint on June 13, 2018. This case was subsequently stayed by the High Court and the order of stay remained in operation till date.

Additional Solicitor General K M Nataraj, along with counsel Naveen Kumar Matta, pointed out that the Income Tax investigation and statement of various witness revealed several incriminating evidence against Shivakumar. After summons, he appeared before the ED officers, but he remained evasive and did not reveal the truth.

Singhvi cited Article 20 of the Constitution to contend that the accused cannot be made to make a self-incriminating statement against himself.

The ED's counsel contended that he was arrested for the offence of money laundering, which was an independent offence under the PMLA Act. The contention that it was only the I-T offences was not correct and the offence of criminal conspiracy was also attracted, they said.

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QR-code tips power Mangaluru's major drug bust: 25 arrested in 2 weeks

News Network

December 16,2025

Mangaluru, Dec 16: The Mangaluru City police have significantly escalated their campaign against drug trafficking, arresting 25 individuals and booking 12 cases under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act between November 30 and December 13. The crackdown resulted in the seizure of a substantial quantity of illicit substances, including 685.6 grams of MDMA and 1.5 kg of ganja.

The success of this recent drive has been significantly boosted by the city’s innovative, QR code-based anonymous reporting system.

"The anonymous reporting system has received an encouraging response. Several recent arrests were made based on inputs received through this system, helping police tighten the noose around drug peddlers," said the City Police Commissioner.

The latest arrests contribute to a robust year-to-date record, underscoring the police's relentless commitment to combating the drug menace.

Up to December 14 this year, the police have registered a total of 107 cases of drug peddling, leading to the arrest of 219 peddlers. Furthermore, they have booked 562 cases of drug consumption, resulting in the arrest of 671 individuals.

The scale of the seizure for the year reflects the magnitude of the problem being tackled: police have seized 320.6 kg of ganja worth ₹88.7 lakh and 1.4 kg of MDMA valued at ₹1.2 crore. Other significant seizures include hydro-weed ganja worth ₹94.7 lakh and cocaine worth ₹1.9 lakh, among others.

The Commissioner emphasized a policy of rigorous enforcement: "We ensure that peddlers are caught red-handed so that they cannot later dispute the case or claim innocence."

To counter the rising trend of substance abuse among youth, the Mangaluru City police have rolled out uniform guidelines for random drug testing across educational institutions.

As part of the drive, tests were conducted in approximately 100 institutions, screening an estimated 5,500 to 6,000 students in the first phase. 20 students tested positive for drug consumption during the initial screening.

Students who tested positive have been provided counselling and are scheduled for re-testing in the second quarter. The testing will also be expanded to students not covered in the first phase. In a move to ensure strict implementation, police personnel were deployed in mufti in some institutions. Reiterating a zero-tolerance stance, the Commissioner confirmed that random testing will continue, and colleges have also been instructed to conduct drug tests at the time of admission to deter substance abuse from an early stage.

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