Cong leaders want CBI probe into past cases involving Oppn

The Congress legislators on Wednesday unanimously urged Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to hand over to the CBI for investigation certain issues and cases that have occurred during the BJP and JD(S) rule in the past

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A list of 11 issues and cases, including the accusation of receiving Rs 150 crore kickback from mine owners against JD(S) leader H D Kumaraswamy, rape case against H Halappa, the Padmapriya suicide case and the BBMP fake bill scam, was circulated at the Congress Legislature Party meeting chaired by Siddaramaiah at the Vidhana Soudha.

Another list of three cases that were handed over for CBI probe in the last two years by the Siddaramaiah government was also circulated. These are the Soujanya murder case, irregularities in the Ramanagar-Channapatna Urban Development Authority and Mandya Urban Development Authority.

Many legislators, including Energy Minister D K Shivakumar, chief whip P M Ashok, P M Narendraswamy, Pramod Madwaraj and A Manju, said the government should pay back the Opposition in the same coin, by ordering a CBI probe into the cases of the past.
Shivakumar said the ruling party should effectively counter the Opposition by raising issues and cases of the past. Manju said the BJP and the JD(S) had politicised the IAS officer Ravi’s case. The issues that have been listed are fit for CBI investigation. But the BJP and the JD(S) governments in the past had refused to hand them over to the federal investigating agency despite the Opposition demand, he said.

Earlier, Siddaramaiah explained the circumstance that forced his government to hand over the Ravi case to the CBI. Opposition parties, the BJP and the JD(S), targeted the government, he said.

The chief minister, however, did not react to the demand from the legislators to hand over the list of 11 cases to the CBI.

Some legislators also took exception to the ministers for not properly defending the chief minister in the Ravi case. Some ministers behaved as if they did not belong to this government. They were least bothered about the issue and made no effort to counter the Opposition. Some ministers give prominence only to the Opposition party leaders and neglect the ruling party MLAs. Action should be taken against such ministers, Ashok is learnt to have said.

Munirathna’s demand

Rajarajeshwarinagar MLA Munirathna demanded that the government recommend a CBI probe into the accusation that he had kept hundreds of BBMP files at his residence. The Lokayukta had subsequently raided his residence.

The chief minister turned down the demand for increasing the legislators' annual area development fund to Rs five crore from Rs two crore.