"Will Be Back": Karnataka Minister's Show Of Strength Before He Resigns
NDTV
In his constituency Shivamogga, supporters protested against his "forced resignation".
BJP stalwart and Karnataka minister KS Eshwarappa, caught in a huge controversy following allegations of corruption and a role in the suicide of a contractor, today asked his supporters not to worry as he "will be back". In a massive show of strength before his resignation, a huge convoy of cars accompanied him as he drove to the capital Bengaluru to resign. In his constituency Shivamogga, supporters protested against his "forced resignation".
"I don't want to cause any trouble for my seniors and well-wishers in the party. So, I am meeting the Chief Minister in the evening to submit my resignation. I am also confident that I will come out clean." he told reporters. Mr Eshwarappa will meet the Chief Minister at 8 pm.
On being asked about Congress MLA Priyank Kharge's charge of other people too involved in the '40% cut money scandal', Mr Eshwarappa said, "Why doesn't he (Mr Kharge) name even one of the people behind this scandal?"
Contractor Santhosh Patil, who died on Tuesday, accused Mr Eashwarappa, who handles the Rural Development and Panchayat Raj portfolio, has named the minister in his last phone messages, saying he was "solely responsible" for his death. In his last WhatsApp messages to friends and political leaders, he had reportedly marked Prime Minister Narendra Modi as well.
