Bengaluru, Aug 21 (IANS): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Wednesday said that the government will not hesitate to arrest Union Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy in the mining case if the need arises.
“If the situation arises, Kumaraswamy will be arrested without hesitation in the mining case. However, the situation to arrest Kumaraswamy has not yet arisen,” the Chief Minister told media persons at Ginigera airstrip in Koppal.
He said that although the Lokayukta Special Investigation Team (SIT) has submitted a report seeking the Governor’s permission to file a chargesheet however no action has been taken by the Governor as of now.
“This has led the SIT to submit another petition,” the Chief Minister said.
Congress has questioned about Governor’s inaction on the SIT report which indicted Kumaraswamy in the mining case. “How can Kumaraswamy continue in his position,” the Chief Minister asked.
Earlier, Kumaraswamy said that he was not scared of the developments in connection with the Karnataka Lokayukta seeking sanction for his investigation and questioned why the SIT report has not been submitted to the Supreme Court.
On Tuesday, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah criticised Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot over his ‘selective’ approach, saying the Governor has adopted a ‘biased’ approach on the consent issue needed for an investigation against Kumaraswamy.
Siddaramaiah said the SIT sought consent for the investigation against Kumaraswamy in November 2023 in the Sri Sai Venkateshwara Minerals (SSVM) case but the Governor did not grant any consent.
In Sri Sai Venkateshwara Minerals (SSVM), it is alleged that illegal activities were committed in 2007 when Kumaraswamy was the Chief Minister. He is accused of awarding a contract to the SSVM Company for mining 550 acres of land.
The SIT is conducting the probe based on a report on illegal mining by the then Karnataka Lokayukta, Justice N. Santhosh Hegde.
Kumaraswamy has been charged under various sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act (PCA), the Indian Penal Code (IPC), and the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act. The SIT sought consent from Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot on November 21, 2023, to submit a charge sheet against him.
In response, the Governor wrote a letter to the SIT on July 29, 2024, seeking clarifications. The SIT submitted the clarifications to the Governor’s queries on Monday.
Along with the response, the SIT again sought permission from the Governor to file a charge sheet against Kumaraswamy.