Ministers, Congress legislators meet Siddaramaiah, seek SIT probe into charges against Munirathna

Vokkaliga legislators seek SIT probe into BJP MLA Munirathna's alleged crimes, sparking political controversy in Karnataka.

A delegation of Vokkaliga legislators, including Ministers, called on Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Friday seeking the formation of a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe cases involving BJP MLA and former Minister Munirathna, who has been arrested first on the charge of making a casteist slur against Dalit community and later on the rape charge. He has been granted bail by the special court of people’s representatives in the first case.

The MLA is also accused of making derogatory references to the Vokkaliga community. Revenue Minister Krishna Byre Gowda and Higher Education Minister M.C. Sudhakar were part of the delegation that met the Chief Minister and urged him to set up the SIT. Speaking to reporters in Mysuru later, Mr. Siddaramaiah said, “I told the leaders we will decide after speaking to Home Minister G. Parameshwara.”

The State Vokkaliga Sangha has also taken exception to the remarks of Mr. Muniratna. “In a democratic setup, any elected representative has to hang his head in shame for what Mr. Muniratna has said,” sangha president C.N. Balakrishna said in a press release.

Meanwhile, former MP for Bengaluru Rural D.K. Suresh, known to be antagonistic to Mr. Munirathna after he defected to the BJP in 2019, demanded a thorough probe into the “network” that is suspected to be behind Mr. Munirathna’s crimes. “There are several allegations in the FIR that Munirathna had honey-trapped several politicians and police officials and was blackmailing them. There seems to be an organised network behind these crimes. It needs to be probed thoroughly,” he said. He also attacked Union Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy, Leader of Opposition in the Assembly R. Ashok, and C.T. Ravi, MLC, who, he said, were defending the MLA in the dock

BJP State president B.Y. Vijayendra, speaking at a press conference at the BJP head office on Friday, said while the party was not trying to protect anyone, it must be noted that those who lost the Lok Sabha polls were indulging in “vendetta politics”. “These incidents which have come out now are said to have happened in 2020. Why have they come out now?” he questioned.

Responding to Congress MLAs and Ministers petitioning for an SIT to probe the alleged crimes of Munirathna, Mr. Vijayendra sarcastically suggested that the Chief Minister should appoint Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar or his brother Mr. Suresh as the SIT chief for an impartial probe.