Karnataka Minister Priyank Kharge defended Chief Minister Siddaramaiah over the MUDA scam probe on Wednesday and asked why the CM should resign. Kharge said that the state BJP president, facing an Enforcement Directorate (ED) case, had not resigned, and asked, “Why should the CM resign?”
Priyank Kharge said, “The State BJP president faces an ED case, and the ECR has been registered. Did he resign? This is a very serious offense, politically motivated. The CM has categorically stated that this is politically driven, that he is a law-abiding citizen, will cooperate with the authorities, and is confident that the verdict will come in his favor.”
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah appeared before the Lokayukta Police office in Mysuru on Wednesday as the alleged MUDA scam improprieties faced an inquiry. The Lokayukta took up the inquiry into the case after a court order dated September 27 which ordered the filing of an FIR. These probe complaints on the illegal allotment of 14 prime sites to Siddaramaiah’s wife, Parvathi, valued at Rs 56 crore.
The ED also registered a money laundering case against the Chief Minister and others based on the same FIR. The case has named Siddaramaiah, his wife-BM Parvathi, brother-in-law-Mallikarjuna Swamy. Devaraju is the person from whom Swamy bought the land, which he later transferred to Parvathi. The ED invoked provisions of the PMLA that empower it to summon people for questioning and possibly seize assets.
Siddaramaiah has constantly denied the charges, dubbing them a political vendetta. He also rejected the opposition BJP’s demand for resignation.
Meanwhile, the Karnataka High Court issued notices to Siddaramaiah. And others over the petition seeking the transfer of investigation on Tuesday. The court also ordered the Lokayukta police to submit investigation details by November 25. The court has scheduled the next hearing in this case for November 26.
ANI
