DK Shivakumar withdraws from lawyers conference after controversy over sharing stage with Supreme Court, High Court judges

Following controversy over participation as the Chief Guest, the Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar has opted to withdraw from the 10th State-Level Advocates' Conference scheduled to take place in Mysore on August 12..This was in view of the fact that judges of the Supreme Court and High Court are also scheduled to take part in the event. The Karnataka State Bar Council (KSBC), which is organising the event, has now removed Shivakumar's name from the invitation.Apart from Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, the invitation letter mentioned the names of dignitaries including Supreme Court judge Justice AS Bopanna, Karnataka High Court Chief Justice Prasanna B Varale/Initially, DK Shivakumar's name was included as the Chief Guest in the event's invitation..However, controversy erupted when Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) Suresh Kumar raised concerns over Shivakumar sharing the stage with judges, considering that the Deputy Chief Minister is party to a case before the High Court.Suresh Kumar highlighted this aspect in a letter he addressed to the Registrar General of the High Court. In his letter, Kumar inquired whether Shivakumar, who is entangled in a criminal case, should be sitting alongside judges from the Supreme Court and High Court.Following this, Shivakumar addressed the media, questioning why similar concerns were not raised when former Chief Minister BS Yeddyurappa participated in similar events. "Aren't there cases in the court against former Chief Minister BS Yeddyurappa as well? Has he not participated in judicial programs though? Let Suresh Kumar talk about it first ... Suresh Kumar should also talk about Yeddyurappa. How many cases are there against BSY? Have they participated in judicial programs in the past or not? Let's talk about it. I will act according to my conscience," said Shivakumar.He added that although his family members were invited to the wedding functions by certain judges, he chose not to attend such events to prevent any potential embarrassment and to avoid such situations