The Karnataka Government Tuesday submitted before the High Court that the custodial interrogation of BJP MLA Byrathi Basavaraj in connection with the Bikla Shiva murder case is necessary, while also questioning the maintainability of his petition for anticipatory bail. Basavaraj is accused Number 5 in the murder case of real estate operative V G Shivaprakash, also known as Bikla Shiva, who was killed in front of his house in East Bengaluru in July last year. The murder was allegedly carried out by a group at the direction of Jagadish alias Jaga, a local gangster who is alleged to have links with Byrathi Basavaraj. Jagadish, who is accused No 1 in the case, previously had disputes with Bikla Shiva related to the real estate business. On December 26, 2025, the Karnataka High Court granted interim anticipatory bail to the K R Puram MLA in the current petition. “Since the petitioner had obtained protection from the coordinate bench of this court until 19 December, considering the facts and circumstances of the case and conduct of investigation by …