Congress brandishes BJP’s pay list

As the war of words continued, Congress leaders on Saturday insisted on an investigation into the ‘diary’ entry signed by BJP MLC Lehar Singh Siroya.

BENGALURU: As the war of words continued, Congress leaders on Saturday insisted on an investigation into the ‘diary’ entry signed by BJP MLC Lehar Singh Siroya.


Releasing copies of a page that has been circulating in the social media for three days now, KPCC working president Dinesh Gundu Rao demanded an independent investigation by a Supreme Court judge into the Sahara Birla diaries, Govinda Raj case and also the diary entry with Siroya’s name.


“This is a methodical effort by the BJP to destabilise the Congress government. We had an inkling that they were up to something when Congress ministers and MLAs started getting raided by different agencies in an attempt to defame them. Later, they announced the chief minister has paid kickbacks.

The BJP is misusing the IT department and leaking information. We have lost confidence in them as they have become a puppet of the Centre. This is witch hunting,” Rao said.


He added that if they wanted Siddaramaiah to resign because of the allegations, then Prime Minister Narendra Modi should also resign looking at the entries in Siroya’s diary.


The diary released by the Congress, allegedly signed by Siroya, has two pages — one for ‘received’ and one for ‘paid’. Each category has initials corresponding to names of BJP leaders at state and central level and has corresponding amounts to their names. Rao said the diary with this particular entry was recovered by IT officials during a raid conducted on Siroya’s house on November 9, 2013.


Siroya dismissed claims that the diary was his. “I was never in any position in the party to handle such huge amounts of money. My signature is clearly forged,” Singh said. 


BJP spokesperson Ashwathnarayan said, “In 2013, none of the BJP leaders supposedly mentioned in the diary were even present on the national scene. Even Siroya had been suspended from the party and had joined KJP with B S Yeddyurappa. This document of payments was fabricated without considering these facts,” he said.

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