Devegowda releases chargesheet against Cong

Bangalore, Sep 18: Former Prime Minister and Janata Dal (Secular) National President H D Devegowda today declared a war against Congress by releasing a 10 point chargesheet against its leaders.

Releasing the charegsheet at a news conference Mr Devegowda dared the Congress leaders to either reply to his 10 questions or apologise to the people of the state for 'attempting to destabilise a popular government and making baseless and mischievous allegations against 'me, my party and my family.' Replying to queries he said "war has begun. Many in the past had tried to finish me and my family politically. I was the only leader to go before the Lok Ayukta and no one else had the courage. If anyone, including his party workers, had any evidence against me or my family members they could submit it before the commission of inquiry ordered by the government,' he challenged.

He said he would wait for response to his questions from the party leadership in New Delhi. If the congress did not prove its charges, he would reveal the truth before the people's court, he declared.

Tracing developments that led to the formation of the first ever coalition set up in the state headed by N Dharam Singh and subsequent government headed by JD(S) and Bharatiya Janata Party he said he was compelled to respond to the 'campaign of calumny' with the sole objective of destabilising a popular government enjoying the support of majority of legislators and tarnishing the reputation of his family, had hurt him no end. "I am constrained to issue a chargesheet against the main opposition and I take full civil and criminal responsibility for the same. Let the people of Karnataka be the prosecutors and the judge," he added.

Mr Devegowda said the Congress had treated the coalition with his party as a marriage of convenience and indulged in an 'illicit political relationship with Siddaramaiah and his supporters during the Panchayat and Taluka elections. He said the Congress not only humiliated his party leaders but also tried to engineer defections and bring about a split in the party with the sole objective of 'demolishing me and my party,' he observed saying that it was the total 'inaction of the coalition government headed by Dharam Singh against people exploiting the state's precious resources, whether it be under the garb of mining or in the name of infrastructural projects involving the land of poor farmers which forced the JD(S) to part ways with the Congress, he recalled.

He alleged that the Congress had engaged in a proxy war against the Kumaraswamy government using some disgruntled elements as pawns and tools. He referred to the Congress demand for Central Bureau of Investigation inquiry into the illegal mining and said it was not surprising. Successive Congress governments at the centre had converted the country's premier investigative agency into 'an instrument of political vendetta,' he rued saying the agency, which was once entrusted with uncovering the most complicated cases, was today engaged all the time in cover up operations. Congress had not spared any institution of eminence in the country in its blind pursuit of power and personal vendetta, he added.

The ten questions, among others, sought reply related to opening of floodgates for illegal mining by dereserving vast tracts and distributing leases in bulk ahead of the Assembly elections and why the Congress had delayed to come out with 'credible evidence ' against the Kumaraswamy government.

He declined to give a clean chit to Forest Minister Chennigappa in the mine bribery case and said it was for the commission to decide about his innocence. However, he showed a printout in which a person resembling Chennigappa before wads of currency as released to the media recently and explained the possibilities of manipulations using latest technology.

UNI