'40% Commission' Row: Karnataka HC Quashes BJP Defamation Case
The Karnataka High Court has dropped a criminal defamation case filed by the BJP against Congress leaders over '40% commission government' ads.
The Karnataka High Court has delivered a significant blow to the BJP by quashing a criminal defamation case filed against senior Congress leaders. The legal battle centered around provocative advertisements that labeled the previous BJP administration as a 40% commission government, alleging systemic corruption during its tenure.
The Core of the Controversy
The dispute began in May 2023 when the Congress party released a series of newspaper advertisements targeting the BJP government that held power from 2019 to 2023 under Basavaraj Bommai. These ads explicitly accused the then-government of operating a "40% commission" racket, claiming that bribes were demanded in several key areas, including:
- Public procurement processes.
- Labour identification schemes.
- The supply of essential materials during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Congress party further alleged that the BJP government had looted approximately Rs 1,500 crore from the people of Karnataka. The advertisements also claimed the existence of a "store card" and "rate card" system, suggesting that government appointments were sold to the highest bidder through bribes.
Legal Battle and High Court Ruling
Following a complaint by the BJP, a trial court had ordered in 2024 that a criminal defamation case be registered against prominent Congress figures. This prompted the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC), Chief Minister DK Shivakumar, and former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to move the High Court to have the case dismissed.
Justice M Nagaprasanna, while hearing the petitions, accepted the arguments presented by the Congress leaders. The petitioners contended that the BJP had filed the case merely to harass them. More importantly, they argued that the allegations of corruption were directed at the then-Chief Minister and members of the BJP cabinet, rather than the BJP as a political organization.
The court found merit in the argument that the BJP, as an organization, was not the entity directly defamed by the statements, meaning the party lacked the legal locus to file a criminal defamation case in this instance.
Previous Rulings
This decision follows a similar legal trajectory for other leaders. The Karnataka High Court had previously quashed the criminal defamation case against Rahul Gandhi regarding the same allegations on February 17, 2026.
The Congress had alleged that the BJP government had looted Rs 1,500 crore from the people of Karnataka through corruption and maintained a rate card for government posts.