Karnataka High Court quashes FIR against Sri Sri Ravi Shankar in land encroachment case

The Karnataka High Court on Wednesday quashed the first information report (FIR) against Art of Living Foundation head and spiritualist Sri Sri Ravi Shankar in connection with a case registered against several persons for alleged land encroachment [Sri Sri Ravi Shankar v. State of Karnataka].

Justice M Nagaprasanna passed the order on a plea filed by Sri Sri Ravi Shankar to quash the case against him.

The FIR in which Ravi Shankar is named, is tied to a public interest litigation (PIL) petition filed in 2023 by one Chandra Sekaran N and some others. The PIL sought demolition of some structures that were allegedly built by encroaching on government land in Kaggalipura village, Uttarahalli Hobli, Bengaluru South Taluk.

Ravi Shankar was among the respondents named in this PIL for having allegedly been involved in the land encroachment.

In response to the PIL, Ravi Shankar maintained that he did not own any land in the area and that he was made a party to the case for ulterior motives.

The Court eventually closed the 2023 PIL in September last year by directing the State to take action against any encroachers in accordance with the law.

However, after the High Court disposed of the 2023 PIL, the Bangalore Metropolitan Task Force (BMTF) registered an FIR suo motu, in which Ravi Shankar was among those accused of land encroachment in Kaggalipura village.

Shankar subsequently moved the present plea to quash this FIR.

During hearings, Shankar's counsel highlighted that even in a memo filed by the State's counsel in the PIL, his name had not featured in the list of alleged encroachers. It was also submitted that Ravi Shankar had not been named in related proceedings initiated by a Land Grabbing Court in 2024.

Special Public Prosecutor (SPP) Belliappa opposed the plea on behalf of the State. He submitted that since it is a land encroachment case, there were no plans to arrest Ravi Shankar during the probe.

He maintained that once Ravi Shankar is suspected of having committed land encroachment, an investigation can be conducted in the matter.

The Court today quashed the case.