JOIN UST J Abraham, who has petitioned the Central Empowered Committee (CEC) to recommend a CBI probe against three former chief ministers, on Friday alleged that the Sadananda Gowda government was trying to shield former chief ministers S M Krishna, Dharam Singh and H D Kumaraswamy.
Addressing reporters here on Friday, he said the State government has concealed facts about the role of then chief ministers Krishna, Singh and Kumaraswamy in illegal mining while sending its reply to CEC on the petition.
The CEC had asked the government to file its response to the petition.
In its six-page reply to the CEC, the government has said the Supreme Court may take an appropriate decision on the petition.
It has based most of the comments on the Karnataka Lokayukta report on illegal mining, which has not recommended any action against Krishna and Kumaraswamy.
Abraham demanded that the government should immediately withdraw its reply to the CEC and send a fresh one based on facts.
Irrespective of the efforts by the government to protect the former chief ministers, the CEC will recommend a CBI probe against them, the way it had done against another former chief minister B S Yeddyurappa, he added.
He alleged that the Sadananda government has been protecting Krishna and Kumaraswamy because they both belong to Vokkaliga community. “It is time for caste politics to be abandoned and the only way to do that and prove to everyone that you (Sadananda Gowda) are above caste politics is to order a CBI probe into the misdeeds of these former chief ministers,” he stated.
Documentary proof
He said that he has documentary evidences to prove that the three former chief ministers were involved in illegal mining and would submit them to the CEC.
Many files related to the recommendations for allotment of mining leases in forest areas that were de-reserved in 2003 have gone missing. But the government has said the files are with the Lokayukta, which is not true, he alleged.
He had alleged that Gowda had promised to send a factual reply to the CEC when he had met him on May 23. But the government had sent its reply on May 21.
This indicates that efforts were made to protect the former chief ministers.