Court of conscience is above legal court: Karnataka CM

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah pays tribute to Mahatma Gandhi on his birth anniversary, in Bengaluru, on October 2, 2024.

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, who is facing a probe by Lokayukta and the ED following allegations of irregularities in allotment of sites by MUDA to his wife, said there is ‘a court of conscience above the legal courts’, and one must act according to it.

“Everyone may not get justice from legal courts. But we must act as per our conscience,” the CM said in Bengaluru on October 2 while participating in a programme organised by Karnataka Gandhi Smaraka Nidhi to mark Gandhi Jayanthi, and to honour various achievers.

“We must act as per our conscience irrespective of whether people praise or criticise us,” said Mr. Siddaramaiah. “It is not possible to implement the ideals of Mahatma Gandhi and Dr. B. R. Ambedkar merely through speeches. The government should take up relevant programmes to implement their ideology alongside trying to create awareness about their life and message. Both myself and my government are doing this,” he maintained. 

Describing former Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri, whose birthday also falls on October 2, as a very honest leader and politician, he said the highest respect that one could pay to such leaders was to walk in the direction showed by them. 

Stating that the country got freedom because of the struggle launched by Mahatma Gandhi, he said it is a matter of pride for all Indians that Gandhiji is being considered as a global leader. 

Law Minister H. K. Patil, Gandhi Bhavan’s Secretary Vishu Kumar and various achievers, including Nataraj Huliyar, the author of Ellara Gandhi, were present at the event.