Bangalore: State Government Tapping My Phones: Justice Hegde
Daijiworld Media Network
Bangalore, Jul 21: In a statement that is likely to stir up a hornet's nest in an already-tense political atmosphere in the state in the wake of the Lokayukta mining report indicting several top politicians including chief minister Yeddyurappa, Lokayukta Justice Santhosh Hegde on Thursday July 21 has claimed that his phone lines are being tapped by the state government.
The statement may have serious implications given the earlier claims by Justice Hegde that some BJP ministers and leaders including V S Acharya and Dhananjay Kumar had tried to influence him to drop Yeddyurappa's name from the report.
The new development may spell more trouble for the state government, which is already under fire from the oppposition Congress and JD(S) for trying to tweak the mining report.
Justice Hegde told the media that the government has been constantly against the Lokayukta and the phone tapping has been going on for the last few months.
He said that his suspicions first arose when a private conversation was leaked to the media. A team of experts checked his office for bugs, but could not find anything.
However, it was later found that his phones were indeed being tapped by the state government and recorded at two places, which he declined to name.
On Wednesday July 20, the report to be filed by the Lokayukta indicted the chief minister and four BJP ministers in illegal mining. It also named JD(S) chief Kumaraswamy and some Congress leaders, and recommended a probe against all of them. The report has not been submitted yet and is expected to be tabled in a week's time.