Dharam Singh demands K'taka CM's resignation

Bangalore, July 13: Leader of the Opposition in the Karnataka Legislative Assembly N Dharam Singh today demanded the resignation of Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy in connection with the allegation made by a BJP legislator that he and Forests Minister C Chennigappa had received a bribe of 150 crore from the mining lobby in Bellary district.

Participating in a discussion on the issue, he said the Chief Minister had no moral right to continue in power after facing such a serious charge. There was no coordination among the ruling coalition partners, he charged.

Reiterating his party's demand for a CBI probe into the issue, he said the problem started only after Mr Chennigappa visited Bellary and submitted a report on illegal mining activities in that district.

He pointed out that BJP MLC Janardhan Reddy, who had levelled the charge against the two leaders, held a meeting with his party leader Venkaiah Naidu in New Delhi today.

Endorsing Mr Singh's views, senior Congress leader Mallikarjuna Kharge said attempts were being made to suppress the truth.

Another senior leader Ramesh Kumar suggested that a Joint Committee, comprising representatives from the Centre and state government, could be constituted to check illegal mining activities in the state.

Former Major and Medium Industries Minister R V Deshpande felt that successive governments had failed to control illegal mining in the state. There was a need to ensure strict monitoring to safeguard the state's resources, he observed.

UNI