Karnataka sting row: Ex-CM Siddaramaiah moves court against media outlets, platforms

Former Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has approached the Bengaluru City Civil court seeking to stop 42 media organisations and digital platforms from publishing videos and related material that he says falsely connect him to a controversy involving a woman.Additional City Civil and Sessions Judge B Pushpanjali reserved her order on Siddaramaiah’s request for interim relief on Monday, October 12. Siddaramaiah’s suit seeks a permanent injunction against the publication or circulation of two videos, along with clips, screenshots, transcripts and reports reproducing their allegations. He has also asked the court to direct platforms to remove the videos or block access to them.The defendants include Kannada and English newspapers,  television channels, digital platforms, YouTube LLC, Google India, WhatsApp, Yahoo India and Facebook India.The suit concerns a video uploaded on September 27 by the YouTube channel Karnataka Honey Trap, and an hour-long programme streamed by Freedom TV Kannada on October 2, titled “LIVE: Biggest CD Blast in Karnataka Politics?”According to Siddaramaiah’s plea, the first video’s title and caption linked him to alleged blackmail, a purported honey-trap network and political developments surrounding his time as Chief Minister. The second programme, he alleges, discussed a purported CD and suggested that a prominent political leader was involved without presenting independently verified evidence.Siddaramaiah has described all the material telecast as false and politically motivated, arguing that its continued online circulation could cause lasting damage to his reputation. The legal move comes amid a political row over alleged sting operations targeting Karnataka ministers. On Monday, Union Minister HD Kumaraswamy accused Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar of being behind efforts to “trap” ministers and claimed the operations were aimed at damaging Siddaramaiah’s reputation.Siddaramaiah, responding to reporters in Bengaluru, said the Congress government was aware of the alleged operations and called for an investigation. “Shouldn’t we learn the truth about those behind it through an investigation?” he asked.Kumaraswamy questioned why the government had not ordered a probe if its ministers were being targeted. Public Works Department Minister Satish Jarkiholi said Shivakumar had only warned ministers that they could be targeted in the future through money or other inducements. He said Shivakumar had not named anyone and added that those seeking an investigation should file complaints first.On October 8, Shivakumar told ministers at a Cabinet meeting that attempts were being made to “trap” them through sting operations. The next day, Congress MLA Ravikumar Ganiga displayed a pen drive and claimed it contained evidence that a Union minister and a Karnataka BJP leader were financing the operations. He said he would release the documents within a week.