Gavai and Justice K. Vinod Chandran noted that the matter had earlier been heard by Justice Surya Kant. The CJI said it would be in the best interest of justice for the case to be heard by Justice Surya Kant’s bench and directed that the matter be listed accordingly. The issue dates back to October last year, when the CBI approached the Supreme Court challenging the State government’s withdrawal of consent to probe the DA case against Shivakumar. On September 17, 2023, a bench of Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan had earlier issued notices on Yatnal’s plea. He was granted bail a month later, and the Supreme Court subsequently quashed the money laundering case, ruling that it must be linked to a scheduled offence.