Not interested in contesting any election: Pramoda Devi

Member of the erstwhile royal family Pramoda Devi Wadiyar on Thursday said that the family members are not interested in politics now.

Addressing a press conference, here, Wadiyar said that she is not entering politics. "I have been making my stand clear since a long time. I am not interested in contesting any election," she said.

To a query on BJP president Amit Shah's meeting with the members of her family, recently, Pramoda Devi said that it was just a courtesy visit.

"Like him, many leaders such as L K Advani and Murli Manohar Joshi had visited the palace. As Shah visited during elections, it attracted media attention. Shah discussed nothing about politics," she said.

Relief to family

In a big relief, the Income Tax Department has put to rest all pending litigations against the family regarding wealth tax and income tax, said Pramoda Devi.

"Based on the Supreme Court's directives, the I-T department took the decision. The department is withdrawing the attachments on all the properties and their income with immediate effect. The I-T department is refunding the amount collected so far, being excess taxes recovered by way of auctioning of properties, attachment of rental income and recoveries from personal income," she said.

She said that this is a landmark judgement as the case was initiated in the 1970s. "It was pursued relentlessly for the past 44 years. This is a victory for my father-in-law the late Jayachamarajendra Wadiyar and my husband the late Srikantadatta Narasimharaja Wadiyar. Srikantadatta Wadiyar was always hopeful that the matter would be resolved in our favour. However, it is unfortunate that the order was passed after his demise. As his successor and legal heir, I am delighted that I am able to take this matter to its logical end. I convey my gratitude to the auditors and advocates who helped me in this matter," she said.