Karnataka chief minister B.S. Yeddyurappa will quit if a prima facie (at first view) case is made out on corruption and illegal land deal charges against him, former BJP president Rajnath Singh said on Thursday. “He will quit if prima facie case is made out, no need to tell him to,” Mr Singh told reporters here.
Mr Singh said there was no need for Mr Yeddyurappa to quit now as no case has been made out.
Mr Yeddyurappa, the first BJP chief minister in south India, said at a public function elsewhere in the city that if charges that he has amassed `1,000 crores since coming to power in May 2008 were proved, he would quit within 24 hours. The allegation against the chief minister was levelled by Janata Dal (Secular) leader H.D. Revanna here on Wednesday.
Mr Singh denied that the BJP was split over Mr Yeddyurappa’s continuation as chief minister in spite of governor H.R. Bhardwaj sanctioning his prosecution.
Five complaints have been filed in a Bengaluru city court by two advocates after Mr H.R. Bhardwaj gave them sanction to try Mr B.S. Yeddyurappa.
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Probe into Gowda kin land deals
Bengaluru, Feb. 3: In a tit-for-tat offensive against the family members of former Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda, the BJP government in Karnataka on Thursday ordered a probe into certain land deals said to have been made by them.
Hitting back at the JD-S chief and his sons, who have been repeatedly levelling charges against CM B.S. Yeddyurappa, the government began a probe into grant of 82.10 acres of government land in Paduvalahippe village in Hassan district, allegedly in violation of the Land Reforms Act. The land secured included 4.39 acres of tank, which was breached and converted into a farm in the name of Mr Gowda’s wife Chennamma, and transferred to his son H.D. Revanna. B.J. Puttaswamy, political secretary to the CM, said revenue authorities in Bengaluru division had served a notice on H. Kavitha, wife of H.D. Balakrishna Gowda, eldest son of Mr Gowda, for purchasing 8.06 acres at Chikkagubbi village. —PTI