Kumaraswamy: I was unaware of iPhone gifts to MPs

Amid reports of distributing costly mobile iPhones to Karnataka MPs, chief minister H D Kumaraswamy on Tuesday said that he was not aware of this and will check from his office and get the details.

The Chief Minister who was here to meet various union ministers to discuss the state pending projects and also hold a meeting with Karnataka MPs, was speaking to reporters.

When asked about the distribution of iPhones to MPs, the CM said: "I don't know about this issue. It is not in the knowledge of the (state) government. I don't know where the news has come from. I don't have information about that."

He further said that he would collect the details from his office on the issue.

The Karnataka Government had given an iPhone, leather bag and a folder along with the invitation requesting state MPs to attend the meeting scheduled on July 18 at Karnataka Bhavan here.

The topic to be discussed in the meeting include Cauvery river water sharing with Tamil Nadu and state pending projects with the central government.

Accepting the invitation, BJP MP from Karnataka Rajiv Chandrashekar returned the "costly iPhone" saying that the government should use this money to pay salaries to civic workers working in the state government.

"I want to bring to your notice that along with an agenda folder, your government has sent a costly iPhone worth more than Rs 1 lakh to me. My conscience will not permit to accept this phone and hence I am returning it," he said in a letter to the CM.

He suggested the CM to use this money to pay civic workers salary, who have been striving hard to keep Bengaluru clean.

He further said that state chief minister on one side talks about cutting down unnecessary expenditure and on the other side the government is not paying the salary of civic workers in Bengaluru.

"One civic worker committed a suicide and farmers in the state are also facing huge debt. In this situation, the public money should not be spent unnecessarily," he added.