Kumaraswamy Begins Indefinite Fast

Bangalore, Jul 9 (IANS): Former Karnataka chief minister H.D. Kumaraswamy Saturday began a fast-unto-death demanding a CBI probe to determine whether his family's Rs.1,500 crore assets were legally acquired or not.

"I will continue the fast till the BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) government announces the probe as allegations against my family are totally false," he told reporters, as he launched the fast at Freedom Park here, about four km from Vidhana Soudha, the state secretariat.

Scores of his Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S) party workers gathered to support him.

Kumaraswamy, 52, is JD-S Lok Sabha member and son of former prime minister H.D. Deve Gowda.

The Gowda family of four sons and two daughters is accused by the ruling BJP of "amassing assets now valued at Rs.1,500 crore by illegal means".

The assets, listed in a booklet made public by BJP June 28 here, include land, commercial and residential properties and several companies run by the family -- mainly by the sons and daughters-in-law.

The booklet, "Amassing wealth by corrupt practices: A tell-tale story of H.D. Kumaraswamy and family", was released to counter his charges of corruption against Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa.

Gowda, who heads the JD-S, and Kumaraswamy, the state president of the party, have not contested the details of the properties listed in the booklet. They insist that "all these are legally acquired".

Immediately after the release of the booklet, the father-son combine dared Yeddyurappa to seek a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe to find out whether the assets were illegally acquired.

Kumaraswamy announced June 29 that he was giving one week to Yeddyurappa to order the CBI probe and will go on a "fast-unto-death" from July 9.

Yeddyurappa has ruled out a CBI probe saying the state government officials were already probing how the assets were acquired.