Times News Network
 
Bangalore, Jun 16: In a move to muzzle his detractors, chief minister H D Kumaraswamy on Thursday announced a judicial inquiry into his assets in the Bangalore Mysore Infrastructure Corridor project area.

An emotional Kumaraswamy,who spent the entire day on Thursday defending his stand against the BMIC project at various events, told a gathering of litterateurs and artistes at the inauguration of the Suvarna Karnataka office: "I have been made to feel like an offender.

It is with pain I'm writing to the Karnataka HC Chief Justice asking for a sitting judge to make an inquiry into my assets and clear both my name and that of my father H D Deve Gowda."

Reiterating his offer to order acquisition of his lands if BMIC requires it, the CM mocked the Congress efforts to make an issue out of it. "An entire delegation went to the poll panel office to complain against my affidavit.

The Congress has spent so many years ruling that it does not know how to behave like a responsible opposition party." But he minced no words in his attack against NICE.

Contending that NICE was behaving like the East India Company that took over the country's reins in the guise of trading, Kumaraswamy said: "There are moves to turn Bangalore into a Union territory and take it away from us.

The first step was taken by the previous governments by handing over the road and a large chunk of area to NICE. But we are not wearing bangles and sitting idle. Despite 11 years of hell, we will speak the truth on the issue."

Maintaining that he had no hatred against the company itself, Kumaraswamy said investors in the state should not get the wrong impression. "I am only trying to ensure that the public gets proper information.

We have to function as NICE slaves in the future, which everyone will understand only much later. Everyone in 200 villages in the area has to seek NICE permission before converting their agricultural land."