Bengaluru: The Karnataka High Court division bench has set aside a single judge’s order that had stayed the summons issued to Union Minister for Heavy Industries, H.D. Kumaraswamy, in connection with an alleged government land encroachment case in Kethaganahalli, Ramanagara taluk.

The bench, comprising Chief Justice Vibhu Bakhru and Justice C.M. Joshi, was hearing a writ appeal filed by the state government. While lifting the stay on the summons, the court clarified that the earlier interim stay against the constitution of a Special Investigation Team (SIT) will continue to remain in force until further orders.

The dispute traces back to a single judge’s ruling on June 19, which had stalled both the government’s January 28, 2025 order forming a five-member SIT, and the May 29 summons issued by the Ramanagara tahsildar to Kumaraswamy. The state government subsequently challenged that order before the division bench.

During the hearing, Advocate General K. Shashikiran Shetty argued that the government’s order creating the SIT had mistakenly invoked Section 195 of the Karnataka Land Revenue (KLR) Act, under which no delegation of such powers had been made. However, he maintained that the summons was validly issued under Section 28 of the KLR Act by the competent revenue authority.

After examining the legal provisions, the division bench observed that a tahsildar is indeed empowered to summon individuals and record evidence while conducting inquiries within his jurisdiction. “There appears to be no doubt that the tahsildar has the authority to conduct such an inquiry,” the court noted. It further held that no irreparable harm would be caused if the inquiry continued, thereby revoking the stay on the summons.

The case originates from a Lokayukta report recommending removal of encroachments from several government survey numbers (7, 8, 9, 10, 16, 17, and 79) in Kethaganahalli village. The SIT, formed under Section 195 of the KLR Act and Section 8 of the Karnataka Land Grabbing Prohibition Act, was tasked with probing ownership and possession of the disputed lands.

The appeal has now been listed for further hearing on September 22, when the High Court is expected to take up arguments regarding the legality of constituting the SIT.