A political confrontation has erupted in Karnataka after Shivakumar warned Cabinet colleagues about alleged attempts to entrap them through sting operation
BY PC Bureau
Bengaluru: October 13: Who is financing the alleged sting operations targeting Karnataka’s political leaders, and why has the state government not ordered a probe? These questions have escalated into a political confrontation after Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar told his Cabinet colleagues that he knew the alleged mastermind behind the operations.
At a Cabinet meeting on October 8, Shivakumar warned ministers that attempts were being made to entrap them. Claiming he had evidence, he said the alleged campaign had targeted him since he became Chief Minister.
“They are trying to start with me. I have all the proof,” he said, adding that he knew who was conducting the operations, who was financing them and who the alleged “mastermind/godfather” was. He declined to disclose the identity at that stage.
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The controversy intensified the following day when Congress MLA Ravikumar Ganiga displayed a pen drive, claiming it contained evidence that a Union minister and a Karnataka BJP leader were financing the alleged operations. He promised to release the material within a week.
Union Minister and JD(S) leader H.D. Kumaraswamy challenged the government to order an investigation rather than wait for the truth to emerge with time. He was responding to Shivakumar’s remark that “time will answer all this”.
Kumaraswamy had earlier alleged that Shivakumar held a lengthy meeting at a five-star hotel in Bengaluru with a person purportedly linked to the sting operations.
“When will that time come? Will it simply descend from above?” Kumaraswamy asked, insisting that the state government must investigate the allegations and explain why it had not initiated a probe.
Former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah also called for an inquiry, saying the truth about those conducting the alleged sting operations should be established. Kumaraswamy seized on his remarks to renew his demand for an investigation.
Siddaramaiah Moves Bengaluru Court for Injunction Against Defamatory Video, Calls It ‘False Propaganda’
Bengaluru
Amid an escalating political war of words in Karnataka over alleged sting operations and honey-trapping claims involving the Congress and Janata Dal (Secular) leader H.D. Kumaraswamy, senior Congress leader and former Chief Minister #Siddaramaiah has approached a court in #Bengaluru seeking an ex parte interim #injunction to restrain the telecast and publication of an allegedly unverified and defamatory video.
The legal move follows the circulation of video clips on various social media platforms, which the #Congress stalwart has termed a coordinated smear campaign aimed at tarnishing his image.
Speaking to reporters about his petition before the court, Siddaramaiah confirmed the development and dismissed the allegations.”False propaganda is being spread on social media, so I am seeking a stay order against it,” he said.
The development comes against the backdrop of bitter exchanges between the #JDS and the ruling Congress, with both sides trading accusations of political blackmail, covert sting operations and honey-trap conspiracies.
The Congress has alleged attempts to target #Karnataka ministers through honey traps and sting operations, with Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar warning Cabinet colleagues about such efforts. Congress MLA Ravi Kumar claimed that private agencies had been hired to surveil and compromise ministers in a bid to destabilise the government.
The Opposition, however, dismissed the allegations, with Union Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy accusing Shivakumar of having orchestrated sting operations against political rivals in the past.
@siddaramaiah @DKShivakumar @hd_kumaraswamy
— Yasir Mushtaq (@path2shah) October 12, 2026
Public Works Department Minister Satish Jarkiholi, however, defended Shivakumar, saying the Chief Minister had warned ministers about possible future attempts to entrap them through money or other inducements. He stressed that Shivakumar had not confirmed that such operations had already taken place or named anyone.
Karnataka BJP president B.Y. Vijayendra condemned what he described as a decline in political standards, saying those responsible for any wrongdoing would face consequences.
Despite claims of evidence and knowledge of an alleged mastermind, the central question remains unanswered: who is behind the sting operations? The allegations require an impartial investigation, and the identities of those involved cannot be established from the public statements alone.
