Congress accuses BJP of misusing ED, I-T Dept to corner DK Shivakumar
BENGALURU: After former Union minister Palaniappan Chidambaram’s arrest, the Congress in Karnataka has been keenly watching developments against its leader DK Shivakumar, with the buzz building about the possibility of arrest.
The Pradesh Congress reacted nervously to Shivakumar being “cornered’’ by the government, which it said was using agencies like the Enforcement Directorate, CBI, IT Department and others as proxies to battle “formidable political opponents”. Congress leaders pointed out that the “investigation attack’’ against Shivakumar began after he rushed to the rescue of the party during the election of Congress leader Ahmed Patel to the Rajya Sabha.
Former MP VS Ugrappa told TNIE, “The misuse of these agencies is ominous for democracy because the complaint against DK Shivakumar is suo motu.’’ KPCC president Dinesh Gundu Rao and Ugrappa addressed a media briefing on Friday evening.
Former chief minister Siddaramaiah accused the Union government of misusing constitutional bodies to target Shivakumar. He said that the ED summons to Shivakumar are “nothing but misuse of power”. Siddaramaiah told reporters on Friday that Shivakumar has taken up a legal battle against the ED for serving the summons. Since the High Court refused to give him relief from arrest, the Congress leader will approach the Supreme Court, he said.
He claimed that the ED and IT Department are being misused to settle scores with Shivakumar for hosting Congress MLAs from Gujarat during the Rajya Sabha elections. “If Shivakumar has made a mistake, let them take legal action. Investigative agencies should not be used for vindictive purposes,” the former chief minister said.
BJP doesn’t interfere: Sriramulu
Reacting to Shivakumar’s accusation that the BJP government was misusing the IT Department and ED to harass him, Health Minister B Sriramulu lashed out, saying, “The BJP government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has never interfered in any administration work. IT and ED officials are doing their job.”
Sriramulu told reporters on Friday, “Before making allegations against the BJP, Congressman DK Shivakumar should understand that business and politics are different. The BJP has no history of interfering in administration work. If IT and ED observe that an individual, irrespective of his profession, owns properties, they conduct raids and have every right to question the suspect. This is what happened in MLA Shivakumar’s case. Instead of making allegations against the BJP, he should concentrate on giving proper answers to IT and ED officials.”
DKS is my political guru: BJP Minister
Kolar: “DK Shivakumar is my political guru. Because of him I entered politics; with god’s grace he will come out without any problem,” said Mulbagal MLA and Excise Minister Nagesh here on Friday. Replying to a question on whether the situation was politically motivated, Nagesh said he was not aware about it.