Governor H.R. Bhardwaj set off another storm on Thursday when he said: “Ulta chor kotwal ko daante?” in response to a question on what he had to say about chief minister B.S. Yeddyurappa threatening to unleash a campaign for the governor’s recall.
The remark, which upset a chief minister who is already on edge, saw him take umbrage over the language used with sources close to Mr Yeddyurappa saying he was mortified at being called a thief. Shooting off a strongly worded letter to the governor on Thursday evening he states “I would likely to formally record my protest against prejudging the issue and making uncalled for statements.”
“By stating that the decision of the state Cabinet is like a thief giving a complaint to the police, you have lowered the dignity and hurt the sentiments of chief minister, the state cabinet and people of Karnataka,” he said.
The battle between the governor and the chief minister has turned increasingly ugly after several complaints were filed against Mr Yeddyurappa, both with the Lok Ayukta and the governor pressing for a probe into allegations the chief minister had acquired land illegally.
Matters are expected to come to a head in the next 48 hours when Mr Bhardwaj is expected to decide whether to grant sanction for the CM’s prosecution.
A letter asking the governor to refrain was delivered (its not clear whether it was hand-delivered or faxed) to the governor on Wednesday.