Kumaraswamy lying about phone tapping to divert attention from Prajwal case: Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah

Speaking to reporters, he accused former chief minister Kumaraswamy of making the false claims to divert attention from the cases of sexual abuse against his nephew and MP Prajwal Revanna.

Bengaluru: Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Wednesday asserted that his government had never indulged in activities like phone-tapping. 

The chief minister said he did not have to resort to such cheap tactics in his entire political career so far and would not do so in future also.

JD(S) state president H D Kumaraswamy had, on Monday, alleged that nearly 40 phones, including his, were tapped. On Tuesday, leader of the Opposition R Ashoka had sought a CBI probe into these charges.

Siddaramaiah told reporters that Kumaraswamy had been making these allegations (telephone tapping)  just to divert the people’s attention from the sleaze case, allegedly involving his nephew and Hassan MP Prajwal Revanna.

“As a CM in the previous term or now, I have never employed such cheap tricks. I do not need to stoop so low. Kumaraswamy is lying,” he said in response to a question.

Earlier in the day, Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar, hitting out at the BJP, alleged that people were aware of how the previous BJP government had indulged in activities like phone-tapping. 

“He (Ashoka) was a home minister. Some of the others (read Kumaraswamy) was a former CM. Let them give a written complaint regarding this. Everyone knows their track record,” he said. 

Reacting to Ashoka’s claims that phone-tapping equipment could be procured from China for as little as Rs 40 lakh to Rs 50 lakh by anyone, Public Works Minister Satish Jarkiholi asked who had stopped the BJP from seeking the help of the central agencies in this regard.