Reddy releases CD, levels fresh charges against CM’s family

BJP legislator Janardhan Reddy released the anxiously awaited documentary evidence on collection of Rs 1.5 billion as bribe by Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy from mine owners in Bellary, but the transcripts of CD showed only businessmen and exporters complaining about paying huge sums of money to the Chief Minister’s family.

But, Reddy promised more clinching evidence in the next few days to back his allegations against the Chief Minister, which had put the JD (S)-BJP coalition Government in Karnataka under a strain.

The screening of the audio and video CDs by Reddy at his residence in Bellary yesterday turned out to be an anti-climax to the hype generated by the BJP legislator’s serious allegations against the Chief Minister.

For, the video footage merely showed the businessmen, whose images had been blurred for security reasons, complaining about the pressure they were undergoing to pay bribe money to the Chief Minister. Neither the Chief Minister nor Forest Minister C Chennigappa and Home Minister M P Prakash, all of whom have been accused in the bribery scandal, were shown on the video footage, much to the disappointment of media personnel, who had gathered at Bellary from different parts of the State.

But, a video footage clearly showed Forest Minister C Chennigappa’s son claiming that his family had invested Rs 250 million on a building being built for a Trust named after the Chief Minister’s father and former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda and his wife Chennamma.

After the screening, Reddy claimed that he had reserved hard documentary evidence in the form of more CDs for screening at a later date. He claimed that the evidence, which had been shown, would be submitted to the Karnataka High Court to press for a CBI probe into the corruption charges against the Chief Minister and his family.

“I will be filing a writ petition in the High Court seeking a CBI probe into the matter”, he announced.

Apart from releasing the CDs, Reddy levelled fresh charges against the Chief Minister’s family yesterday.

He disclosed documents pertaining to BSK Trading Company, a private export company floated by the Chief Minister’s family, which was engaged in mining business. He said the trading company, which has Kumaraswamy’s brother H D Balakrishna Gowda and his sister in law Kavitha as partners, was purchasing iron-ore from mining company and exporting the same through Mangalore port.

The proprietor of the mining company from whom Kumaraswamy’s family was procuring iron ore had been blackmailed and threatened by the Mines and Geology Department into parting with fifty per cent of the iron ore, he alleged. “The proprietor of the company succumbed to a heart attack a fortnight ago”, Reddy revealed.

Since Kumaraswamy became the Chief Miniter in February 2006, Reddy said a whopping Rs 230 million had been credited into the account of Kavitha. “All this is the money that has come in the form of bribe”, Reddy alleged, providing reporters with documents pertaining to the financial transactions.

Reddy also released documents showing Kumaraswamy and his wife Anita being partners in a yet-to-launched Kasturi Kannada television channel. He said Kumaraswamy’s family was also involved in Amog Media, a cable network company.

CM CALLS EVIDENCE CONCOCTED: Dismissing the allegations of bribery levelled against him by BJP legislator Janardhan Reddy, Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy yesterday questioned the authenticity of the audio and video tapes played before the media as documentary evidence of his involvement in the bribery scandal.

Speaking to reporters at Gulbarga in north Karnataka, the Chief Minister suspected that the tapes played by Janardhan Reddy had been doctored to project him in poor light.

He ruled out the possibility of submitting his resignation in the face of corruption charges levelled against him by the BJP legislator.

Kumaraswamy received support from his coalition partner BJP on the bribery issue. BJP’s Karnataka unit President D V Sadananda Gowda told reporters that the evidence provided by their suspended party legislator Janardhan Reddy was not “conclusive”.

BJP leader and Deputy Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa said there was no threat to the coalition Government. The coalition partners are united and committed to the continuation of the Government, he said