DK Shivakumar
Karnataka minister DK Shivakumar.Twitter/DK Shivakumar

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) said on Tuesday that it has registered a case of money laundering against Karnataka Minister and Congress leader DK Shivakumar.

The action comes in the wake of a chargesheet filed by the Income Tax Department in a special court in Bengaluru on charges of alleged tax evasion and hawala transactions worth crores of rupees.

An ED official said that the case registered against Shivakumar pertained to the recovery of Rs 4 crore from the flats owned by the minister in Delhi.

Beside Shivakumar, Sachin Narayan, Anjaneya Hanumanthaiah, an employee of Karnataka Bhawan in New Delhi, and N Rajendra have also been named in the case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

The IT department has alleged that Shivakumar and his associate SK Sharma transported a huge amount of unaccounted cash on a regular basis through hawala channels with the help of other accused.