BENGALURU: Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president DK Shivakumar on Friday expressed surprise over the Enforcement Directorate raid on party leader Zameer Ahmed Khan. “If it is about disproportionate income, then the Income Tax Department should inquire. Only if there is money laundering, the ED steps in. I will speak to Zameer and find out,” he said.
In a related development,the BJP on Friday tweeted that Congress leader Siddaramaiah was a “beneficiary” of the ED raids on Khan. The BJP seemed to imply that Siddaramaiah, who was looking for a safe seat for the 2023 election, stands to benefit from the action on Khan. In the tweet, the BJP said Siddaramaiah was criticizing the raid as politically motivated, only for the sake of it.
This prompted angry responses from Congress leaders. Former Legislative Council Chairman V R Sudarshan said, “The BJP’s tweets are insensitive, inhuman and not in good taste. Speaking poorly about a mass leader like Siddaramaiah and maligning him on personal grounds doesn’t augur well for the party. About Siddaramaiah contesting from Chamarajpet, Zameer himself has offered it, so where is the need for such comments?’’
Former MP V S Ugrappa said, “The BJP is scared of Siddaramaiah because he is a mass leader and they are trying to malign him. People will teach them a lesson at the right time.’’ “There have been allegations
of corruption against B S Yediyuurappa by his own partymen like Basanagouda Patil Yatnal and A H Vishwanath who have publicly issued statements. Why are there no raid on him,’’ he questioned.