Kumaraswamy said the SIT submitted its report seeking prosecution against me only after I started attacking the Congress government

Union Minister HD Kumaraswamy attends a press conference in Bengaluru on Wednesday. | Photo credit: Sudhakara Jain

Union Steel and Heavy Industries Minister HD Kumaraswamy on Wednesday alleged that the Congress government had let the Lokayukta SIT submit a report against him to the Governor seeking permission to prosecute just to settle political scores with him because he had launched an attack on the Lokayukta SIT. He also alleged that his signature was forged on the mining lease documents.

Addressing a press conference, Mr. Kumaraswamy said: “Last November, after I started attacking the Congress government on a host of issues, especially corruption, the Lokayukta submitted a report against me to the governor, seeking permission to prosecute. The governor, after studying the report, said there was some dispute about the signatures on the document and directed the special investigation team to take up the case again.

Asked why the Congress government had raised the issue only now after being silent for so long, the Union minister claimed that the Congress leader could not accept the fact that he was now a member of the Union Cabinet. “How long will it take for the Lokayukta SIT to conduct its investigation? I had moved the court in 2014. Will they take so much time to conduct their investigation? They have not only taken my signature but also my handwriting to authenticate the amended order document. Let them conduct their investigation wherever they want, get the report from any lab,” said Mr. Kumaraswamy, who is also the state president of the JD(S).

“Don’t you think the case could have been closed in 2018 when I was the chief minister?” he asked.

Insisting that the signature of Sai Venkateshwara on the mining lease order document was not his, the Union Minister said: “It all happened on October 6, 2007. I don’t know who signed it. I did not allot the land to the company for mining; I don’t know who committed the fraud. I came to know about it after I came to know that an official had transferred Rs 20 lakh from the company to his son’s account,” he said.

“I want to ask those who are going around claiming that my signature was found on the documents. Have you investigated whether it is my signature? What did I sign? Has the Special Investigation Bureau investigated? Does the government know what illegality has been committed? Neither the Special Investigation Bureau nor the police found out that Rs 20 lakh had gone into the bank account of the police officer’s son. It was I who found out,” he claimed.

Taking a dig at Virajpet MP and legal adviser to Chief Minister AS Ponnanna, Mr. Kumaraswamy said, “Mr. Ponnanna, there are people who know the law better than you. You and some other ministers have asked me to resign. I am willing to resign if required, unlike your leader (Siddaramaiah), who finds fault with the Governor for allowing prosecution against him and comments about the Governor in a derogatory manner. You all should be ashamed for using such words to demean the Governor.”