From Our Special Correspondent

Daijiworld Media Network

Bengaluru, Feb 26: Even as the Income Tax Department or Enforcement Directorate of the Government of India have remained tight-lipped on the existence of the diary allegedly seized at Congress MLC Govindaraju’s residence or on the investigation into the contents regarding the alleged huge payoffs to the Congress high command and other ministers, BJP State General Secretary Shobha Karandlaje has claimed that the Karnataka Lokayukta has undertaken a probe.

She was speaking at a function organised by the Art and Cultural Cell of the State BJP on Sunday.

Shobha, who is known to be a close confidant of former Chief Minister and State BJP President B S Yeddyurappa, disclosed that the Registrar of the State Lokayukta has written to the Income Tax Department authorities on December 26 to provide details of the raids and the diary.

It may be recalled that Yeddyurappa had demanded the resignation of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and dissolution of the State Assembly to seek a fresh mandate from the people, which had been stoutly rejected by the latter.

The Lokayukta office, according to Shobha, has taken up the matter for a probe on a private individual’s complaint filed on December 20.

“The IT authorities had written to the Lokayukta to file a request in a proper format under relevant sections, which has been complied with," she claimed.

"I have authentic information from credible sources that the Lokayukta, after receiving the contents of the diary, is probing the matter,” the BJP general secretary added.

The BJP leader, however, chose not to speak of the contents of the CD released by the State Congress leaders regarding the alleged conversation between Yeddyurappa and Union Minister Ananth Kumar on February 20 during the BJP Core Committee meeting regarding payments to the party high command or the latest salvo fired by State Congress Working President Dinesh Gundu Rao and other Congress leaders regarding the seizure of a diary by the IT Department on November 9 and 10, 2013, and written by the then BJP State Treasurer Lehar Singh Siroya giving details of nearly Rs 391 crore payoffs to the BJP Central leaders.

She further said the existence of the diary containing information of incriminating nature has been admitted by Govindaraju himself by writing to the IT authorities seeking information whether the contents of the diary so seized from his residence has been shared with B S Yeddyurappa or others.

“This is nothing but inadvertent admission of the existence of the diary,” Shobha argued.

Shobha described the statement of Govindaraju that somebody might have left the diary in his house as "ridiculous.”

“The diary has been seized by the IT authorities from the bedroom of Govindaraju. The officials have obtained signatures of two persons as witnesses. Govindaraju has become a butt of ridicule by making this laughable statement,” the BJP general secretary said.