Supreme Court stays Karnataka HC order making Union Minister HD Kumaraswamy a party in contempt case. Case involves alleged illegal land encroachment in Bidadi by Kumaraswamy and his family.
New Delhi: Today, on Thursday, the Supreme Court of India put a temporary hold on a Karnataka High Court order that had made Union Minister and JDS leader H.D. Kumaraswamy a party in ongoing contempt of court proceedings.
These proceedings are linked to serious allegations of large-scale land encroachment in Kethaganahalli village, located in Bidadi, Karnataka.
A two-judge bench consisting of Justices Pankaj Mithal and Prasanna B. Varale heard the case. The bench issued a notice to the NGO “Samaj Parivartan Samudaya,” which is represented by senior lawyer Prashant Bhushan.
The NGO had accused Kumaraswamy and his family members of illegally encroaching on government land in the village.
The contempt case in question is currently pending before the Karnataka High Court. It is based on an alleged violation of a court order passed on January 14, 2020, by a division bench of the same court.
“The above order in the writ petition was passed by the high court on the basis of the statement by the additional advocate general wherein he stated that the state will comply with the order dated August 5, 2014, passed by the Karnataka Lokayukta within a period of three weeks.”
However, the Supreme Court noted that the Lokayukta’s 2014 order was only an interim report. The ombudsman later closed the matter officially on March 3, 2021.
Senior advocate C.A. Sundaram, appearing on behalf of Kumaraswamy, argued that contempt proceedings cannot be initiated based on an interim order, especially since the Lokayukta had itself closed the matter.
“The second submission is, that at the relevant time, the petitioner was not a party to the contempt proceedings but even then, the actions were taken against them for eviction. Therefore, this court vide order dated May 28, 2025 disposed of the SLP preferred by the petitioner with liberty to bring to the notice of the high court that he has been deleted from the contempt proceedings.”
Sundaram explained that Kumaraswamy, following the Supreme Court’s direction, had submitted an application to the Karnataka High Court clarifying his position. However, instead of acknowledging this clarification, the high court added him as a party to the contempt proceedings.
“The submission is, he has not filed for impleadment but has brought it to the notice of the court as directed by this court. Issue notice.”
Following these arguments, the Supreme Court bench issued a notice in the matter. It also directed that the parties opposing Kumaraswamy’s plea, including the NGO, must submit their responses within four weeks.
“In the meanwhile, the effect and operation of impugned order dated 17 April 2025 will remain in abeyance.”
This means that the High Court’s April 17 order, which made Kumaraswamy a party to the contempt case, has been temporarily paused.
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However, the Supreme Court did not issue notices to other parties in the matter, including the Karnataka government.
The root of the current contempt case lies in an earlier plea filed by the NGO “Samaj Parivartan Samudaya.”
The plea referenced an interlocutory report issued in 2011 by the Karnataka Lokayukta. That report had flagged the illegal occupation of government land in the village by certain individuals, allegedly including Kumaraswamy and his family.
In response, the Karnataka government had formed a special investigation team (SIT) which reportedly found prima facie evidence to support the allegations of land encroachment.
Later, in 2020, the High Court closed the original case after the state’s then Advocate General gave an assurance that the state would act upon the Lokayukta’s findings.
However, the Lokayukta itself formally closed its proceedings in 2021, citing lack of jurisdiction.
Despite this, a contempt petition was admitted by the Karnataka High Court against government authorities for failing to take back the illegally occupied land, as recommended earlier.
During this process, eviction notices were sent to Kumaraswamy even though he was not officially made a party to the contempt proceedings at the time.
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Kumaraswamy then approached the Supreme Court, which disposed of his Special Leave Petition (SLP) on March 28, 2025. The court advised him to take his concerns to the High Court.
Following that advice, Kumaraswamy filed an application before the High Court explaining that he should not be subjected to eviction as he had not been formally impleaded in the contempt case.
Despite this clarification, the Karnataka High Court added him as a respondent in the case through an order passed on April 17, 2025 — an order which has now been stayed by the Supreme Court.
CASE TITLE:
H.D. KUMARASWAMY vs SAMAJ PARIVARTANA SAMUDAYA SPS SLP(C) No. 14420/2025
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