BENGALURU: With Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot yet to decide on giving sanction to prosecute Chief Minister Siddaramaiah in the MUDA case, the ruling Congress hopes that the governor will not go beyond the advice of the council of ministers.
“I have full confidence that the governor, who is a wise and senior-most politician, will respect the resolution of the council of ministers(to withdraw show-cause notice given to CM and reject the petition of social activist TJ Abraham to give sanction to prosecute) and will not go beyond the law,” said Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar on Monday.
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, when asked by reporters as to why the governor is delaying the decision, he said, “You ask the governor.” CM’s legal advisor AS Ponnanan, Virajpet MLA, said that while replying to the governor’s show-cause notice, the council of ministers and CM gave comprehensive, well-documented reasons as to why the governor cannot give the sanction.
“The governor does not have the power to hand over the case to the CBI or any other investigating agency. Under the Prevention of Corruption Act, the governor is the competent authority only to give the sanction under Section 17A as CM is a public servant,” he said.
Former MLC and KPCC media chief Ramesh Babu said that former CM BS Yediyurappa had approached the Karnataka High Court in 2011, challenging the then governor giving the sanction to prosecute him. The court had set aside the governor’s sanction on November 24, 2015.
In the MUDA case, Opposition BJP-JDS leaders had expected the governor to decide after the Lok Sabha session got over and hope that he would give the sanction. “It will happen in its own time as the governor has taken cognisance of the case,” said BJP spokesman MG Mahesh from Mysuru, who claimed to be the first to raise the issue of illegal allotment of sites to CM’s wife by MUDA.