The Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee has expelled former party general secretary Kripa Alva for six years with immediate effect over allegations of her involvement in an alleged sting operation targeting Congress leaders in the state, escalating a controversy that has gripped Karnataka politics for weeks.
The expulsion order, issued by Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee Vice-President M Narayanaswamy on the instructions of state Congress president B K Hariprasad, said Alva's conduct in the matter amounted to anti-party activity.
It said the controversy had caused embarrassment to the party because of negative publicity and reactions in the media, and noted that a show-cause notice had been issued to Alva seeking an explanation, but that she had not submitted any response or explanation so far.
Alva is the woman seen in videos described as a sting operation that contained serious allegations against former chief minister Siddaramaiah. Siddaramaiah has named her as being behind what he has called a defamatory video, and has obtained a court injunction against the airing and publishing of the video by media houses.
Alva was chairperson of the Karnataka State Commission for Protection of Child Rights between 2015 and 2018, during Siddaramaiah's first term as chief minister.
The expulsion is the latest turn in a controversy that began in early October, when Congress MLA Ganiga Ravikumar alleged that a Union Minister and a Karnataka BJP leader had hired a Delhi-based agency to conduct sting operations targeting 10 Karnataka ministers in order to embarrass the Congress government.
The allegation set off a chain of claims and counter-claims, with the purported sting video circulating on social media and political leaders trading accusations about who was behind it.
Siddaramaiah has maintained that the video was fabricated to blackmail him, and has called for a fair investigation to identify those responsible, regardless of their party affiliation. He has named Alva and Power TV owner Rakesh Shetty as those behind the alleged plot, and has said Shetty admitted to having made the video himself.
His son and Urban Development Minister Yathindra Siddaramaiah has publicly accused Alva of trying to blackmail his father for an election ticket, saying she wanted the Congress ticket to contest from the Puttur Assembly constituency. These are allegations made by the Siddaramaiah camp, and the investigation into the episode is still under way.
Bengaluru police, who investigated the alleged sting operation, said on Thursday that the allegations portrayed in the video were part of a fabricated and deliberately constructed narrative.
In a statement, the police said the evidence gathered so far, including statements recorded from individuals appearing in the video, did not substantiate the incident as depicted, and that the allegations made or implied in the recording about individuals mentioned in it were, prima facie, false and concocted.
The police said all individuals appearing in the video had been identified and examined extensively, some on multiple occasions, and that the investigation was now focused on the authenticity and origin of the video, who created, facilitated, uploaded and amplified it, and whether it was part of a coordinated attempt to malign individuals in positions of responsibility and trigger political controversy.
The police also said that highly politically connected individuals in Delhi may be linked to the circulation of the video, although they did not name the person they believe was behind the operation. Siddaramaiah is reported to be unhappy with aspects of the police handling of the case, and is said to be considering raising the matter with the party's central leadership, including over the handling of the episode by his successor as chief minister, D K Shivakumar.
The controversy has also drawn in other political formations. Janata Dal (Secular) leader and Union Minister H D Kumaraswamy led a march to the Director General of Police's office in Bengaluru earlier in October, demanding action against those allegedly behind the operation, and has said he would stand by Siddaramaiah in the case.
The episode has thus cut across party lines in unusual ways, with leaders from rival parties converging on the demand for a thorough investigation even as they disagree on much else.
For the Congress in Karnataka, the expulsion of Alva is both a disciplinary step and a political signal. The party has sought to draw a line under the controversy by acting against a former office-bearer whose name has figured prominently in it, while also pointing to the police findings that the video's narrative was fabricated. The six-year expulsion is a severe punishment in party terms, effectively removing Alva from the organisation for a full electoral cycle and beyond.
The episode also raises broader questions about the use of covert recordings in politics. Sting operations have a contested history in Indian public life: they have sometimes exposed genuine wrongdoing, but they have also been used to manufacture scandals, and the line between the two depends heavily on verification. The police statement in this case, that the narrative was fabricated, underscores why verification matters before a recording is treated as evidence of anything.
The court injunction obtained by Siddaramaiah reflects the same concern, restricting the circulation of material that the court was persuaded should not be published pending further proceedings.
What happens next will depend on the police investigation and on whether further disciplinary or legal action follows. The police have said their investigation continues, and the focus on who created and amplified the video suggests that more names could emerge. Alva, who did not respond to the party's show-cause notice according to the expulsion order, has not, in the reports available, publicly responded to the expulsion itself.
If she chooses to challenge it, the dispute could move into a legal or party forum.
For Karnataka politics, the controversy arrives at a sensitive time, with the Congress government navigating internal dynamics between its senior leaders and an opposition eager to exploit any sign of disarray. The sting episode has already consumed significant political attention, diverting focus from governance issues.
The expulsion may help the party close the chapter internally, but the police investigation and the public debate it has generated are unlikely to fade quickly.
The case is also a reminder of how quickly unverified material can travel in the age of social media, and how difficult it can be to contain once it has spread. A video posted online can shape public perception within hours, long before any investigation can establish its authenticity. In this instance, the police have now stated their prima facie findings, the courts have intervened on publication, and the party has taken disciplinary action.
Whether those steps are enough to settle the matter, or whether it continues to reverberate through Karnataka politics, will become clear in the weeks ahead.
(Reporting based on Deccan Herald, NDTV and The Federal.)