Don’t care if BJP sends me to jail: DKS

By NT Correspondent

Bengaluru: Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president DK Shivkumar said that he wouldn’t stop attacking the BJP-led state government over alleged scams and misrule even if they sent him to jail.

Shivakumar made the comments while addressing a protest rally in Shivamogga on Tuesday. “The BJP may send me to Tihar Jail or they may send me to Parappana Agrahara or any other jail for that matter,” he said.

“The BJP government is doing great injustice to the state with its corruption in appointments and is betraying youth. On the matter of Ashwath Narayan submitting a fake certificate, Kumaraswamy spoke something. They are secretly trying to cover up the corruption of the government.

“Yeddyurappa has already given a clean chit to Eshwarappa in the contractor Santosh Patil suicide case. They are trying to cover up their corruption and are even protecting junior level authorities in the matter,” he added.

Ashwath Narayan met MB Patil seeking protection: Shivakumar

Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president DK Shivakumar on Tuesday said that Minister for Higher Education Ashwath Narayan had paid a visit to senior Congress leader MB Patil’s house seeking protection from corruption allegations.

“To ensure that no one raises their voice against the corruption he is involved in, Ashwath Narayan met MB Patil. He just wants to ensure that he is protected,” he said.

“They say that it was clearly a private visit. Many of us own educational institutions and Narayan went to seek advice, it was said. I don’t want to speak anything more on the matter. You may ask them why they met each other,” Shivakumar added.

Meanwhile both Patil and Narayan maintained that they were friends despite being from rival parties and the visit was private. It is noteworthy that when the separate Lingayat religion issue came up, there was friction between Patil and Shivkumar. Patil, a Lingayat had campaigned for religious minority status for Lingayats. The campaign had found support from the then Chief Minister Siddarmaiah. Many poll analysts believe the move spoilt Congress prospects of winning the 2018 Assembly election.