The petitioner, Sardar Sarfaraz Khan, a public servant who served for 34 years and retired on 31 December 2025, challenged the registration of Crime No. 63/2025 by the Karnataka Lokayukta Police just one month before his retirement, alleging disproportionate assets under Section 13(1)(b) read with Section 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988. The petitioner contended that he hails from an affluent family with legitimate inherited wealth, that all properties and income were duly declared to the Income Tax Department and the competent authority under the Karnataka State Civil Service (Conduct) Rules, 2021, and that the Lokayukta violated its own circular dated 11-05-2023 by not conducting a mandatory preliminary enquiry before drawing up the source report. The source report alleged that the petitioner had accumulated assets disproportionate to his known sources of income by approximately 135.04%, amounting to around Rs. 9,42,74,175, in his own name and in the names of family members. The respondent-State argued that the veracity of the source report and the question of disproportionate assets are matters of evidence to be determined during investigation, and that preliminary enquiry is not mandatory. The court reserved the matter after hearing both sides, and the judgment was pronounced on 01 July 2026; however, the operative order/final decision is not fully reproduced in the provided text.