NEW DELHI: Bharatiya Janata Party on Wednesday claimed that Congress leader Priyank Kharge‘s name had occurred thrice in the suicide note written by contractor Sachin Panchal. Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah, however, defended Kharge and said that there was no evidence against him.
“Minister Priyank Kharge’s name is mentioned at three places in the seven-page suicide note. You demand documents. Here is the one. What else should we produce?” BJP leader Chalavadi Narayanaswamy said.
“We know that you don’t have the guts to remove him because the Minister’s father Mallikarjun Kharge is the Congress president. If you touch Priyank then he would uproot you. You are afraid of losing power. You are glued to your chief ministerial position,” he added.
He said that while there were initial doubts about the authenticity of the suicide note written by Panchal, the FSL report later confirmed that it was penned by the civil contractor himself.
He reiterated his party’s demand for a CBI probe in the case.
‘His name is not there’
Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah denied Kharge’s involvement in the case and said that his name was not mentioned in the suicide note.
“Is Priyank Kharge’s name mentioned in the suicide note? His name is not mentioned anywhere. The Minister has said that he is ready for any inquiry,” he said.
“Once the report is submitted we will see if it says Priyank Kharge has done anything wrong. As of now, there is no evidence, there is no document and there is no mention of his name anywhere,” he added.
Reacting to the BJP’s demand for a CBI probe, the CM questioned whether the saffron party had no faith in the state police. He pointed out that when the BJP was in power, they never handed over a single case to the CBI, and asked what moral authority the BJP had to make such a demand now.
In his suicide note, Sachin Monappa Panchal accused Raju Kapanur of pressuring him for one crore rupees, a claim which Kapanur has refuted. The BJP has further alleged that Kapanur is a close associate of Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Minister Kharge.
Meanhile, an FIR was filed against BJP leaders Chalavadi Narayanaswamy, CT Ravi, and 11 others on charges of unlawful assembly, police said.
They had staged a protest on Tuesday, demanding the resignation of rural development and panchayat raj minister of Karnataka Priyank Kharge over the suicide case.
