'Charges against me baseless'

Earlier in the day, Halappa had stated that he suspected the hand of his political rivals behind the conspiracy, but had refused to take any names. However, he later charged that Bangarappa and his family were behind the conspiracy.

Bangarappa refuted the allegations. “I have never stooped down to such level in my 40 years of public life. Halappa is making baseless charges. Why did he not name me earlier in the day. He is now acting on the directions of Yeddyurappa”, he added.

At the same time, Halappa’s one-time friend-turned-political foe, Sagar legislator, Belur Gopalkrishna has also distanced himself from the controversy. “I have nothing to do with it. I came to know about the incident through the media,” he said.