BENGALURU: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Friday (March 29) demanded that Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy immediately step down as he "disclosed to the people beforehand" about the income tax raids in the state. The saffron party alleged that the conduct of the chief minister went against the oath of secrecy he had taken while assuming the office.
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The saffron party alleged that the conduct of the chief minister went against the oath of secrecy he had taken while assuming the office. "You have no authority to continue (as the chief minister). You must resign. How can you put obstacles on a secret operation by the income tax department, Central Bureau of Investigation and Enforcement Directorate? Your conduct is against the Constitution and the federal system of the country," BJP spokesperson Go Madhusudan told a press conference.
He was reacting to the ruling Congress-JDS alliance's allegations that the I-T raids were carried out on JD(S) leaders overseeing the elections of Kumaraswamy's son, Nikhil, in Mandya and nephew Prajwal Revanna in Hassan. "You (Kumaraswamy) have taken the oath of secrecy too. When you had information about the raids, how can you leak it? By holding a press conference, you belled the cat so that rats can escape," said Madhusudan. "Give us an account of the money you have stashed with the contractors. That is the taxpayers' money," he added.
The crackdown came within a day after Kumaraswamy claimed Wednesday night that the I-T raids had been planned from 5 am on Thursday. Income Tax sleuths on Thursday (March 28) carried out pre-dawn raids at 15 to 20 locations including Bengaluru, Mandya, Mysuru, Hassan, Ramanagar and Shivamogga. Kumaraswamy even called the raids "political revenge by the Centre" and accused the income tax officials of working like "BJP's agent".
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