Then PM Narasimha Rao ditched my father: Karunakaran's son
Thiruvananthapuram, Sep 16 : Late Congress leader K. Karunakaran's son K. Muraleedharan on Sunday claimed that then Prime Minister P.V. Narasimha Rao "ditched" his father and then Kerala Chief Minister after the 1994 ISRO espionage case.
"As far as I know, and what was told by him (Karunakaran), he was crestfallen by the way Rao (then Congress President) behaved in 1995. It was Rao who ditched him. (Congress leader) G.K. Moopanar called me on March 15, 1995, to tell my father to resign as Chief Minister as per Rao's directive, which he did the next day," Muraleedharan, a Congress legislator, told the media here.
"He (Karunakaran) told me that Rao was responsible (for his removal). No one from Kerala had ever asked for Karunakaran's removal. What happened in the Congress then was nothing but the usual factional feud," the Congress leader said.
Muraleedharan also said that had someone from the Nehru-Gandhi family been at the helm either in the government or the party in 1995, Karunakaran would not have suffered the "humiliation". Karunakaran passed away in December 2010.
The Congress leader said that he will appear, if asked to, before a three-member committee set up by the Supreme Court to probe the role of three police officers in the espionage case and tell them what he had said on Sunday.
Reacting to his sister Padmaja Venugopal's assertion that the Indian Space Research Organisation espionage case was the creation of five Congress leaders which led to Karunakaran's resignation on March 16, 1995, Muraleedharan said that he did not know on what basis she had made the statement.
Her statement came after the Supreme Court on September 14 directed the Kerala government to award Rs 50 lakh compensation to ISRO scientist S. Nambi Narayanan for his unnecessary arrest and harassment and mental cruelty he underwent due to false implication in the espionage case.
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CM Siddaramaiah alleges ‘criminal conspiracy’ in Sringeri recount, vows legal action
Bengaluru (PTI): Alleging a “criminal conspiracy” by BJP candidate D N Jeevaraj in the Sringeri Assembly poll recounting, Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah on Tuesday said the outcome was manipulated after valid postal ballot votes in favour of Congress leader T D Raje Gowda were tampered with during the recounting process.
Following a Karnataka High Court order on an election petition filed by Jeevaraj, challenging Raje Gowda’s election, the reverification and recounting were conducted on Saturday.
After the reverification and recount of postal ballots for the Sringeri Assembly constituency, votes polled in favour of Raje Gowda were reduced by 255, the returning officer said.
A report on the matter has been submitted to the Election Commission of India for further action, the officer added.
Congress leader Raje Gowda had won the 2023 Assembly polls from Sringeri by 201 votes, defeating his nearest rival Jeevaraj.
Addressing a press conference in Bengaluru, Siddaramaiah said the High Court had directed the recounting of postal ballots and that irregularities were noticed during the exercise conducted on May 2.
“This is a clear case of criminal conspiracy,” Siddaramaiah said, alleging that valid votes cast in favour of Raje Gowda were altered after being accepted by counting agents of all parties, including Congress, BJP, and JD(S).
He claimed that during the recounting of postal ballots, 255 votes were initially accepted as valid by all agents but were later tampered with by subordinate officials.
“There is a second mark on the votes polled in favour of Raje Gowda. They had accepted these as valid votes. Subsequently, another mark was made by officials. This is a clear case of criminal conspiracy,” he said.
When asked who was behind the alleged conspiracy, the CM replied, “It was hatched by Jeevaraj and others. It is planned.”
Siddaramaiah further alleged that the returning officer acted improperly by declaring the result despite the presence of an Election Commission observer during the recounting.
“Immediately after the counting, the returning officer announced the result. He should not have done so; this is against the law,” he said.
He pointed out that Raje Gowda had originally won by 201 votes, but after the recounting, the BJP candidate was declared the winner by 52 votes.
“The BJP has committed a criminal act of conspiracy. This is not vote chori but vote dacoity,” he alleged.
The CM said a police complaint had already been filed by Raje Gowda’s election agent, Sudhir Kumar, and emphasised the need for electoral integrity.
“We want transparency and free and fair elections. That is what our Constitution mandates,” he added.
Stating that the government would pursue legal remedies, Siddaramaiah said, “We are preparing an appeal challenging the returning officer’s announcement in a court of law.”
Responding to a separate query on elections in other states, the CM said there appeared to be an anti-incumbency factor in West Bengal, while results in Tamil Nadu were “surprising,” adding that Vijay’s party was emerging as the largest there.
Following the victory of party candidates in Bagalkote and Davanagere South, Siddaramaiah expressed confidence about future electoral prospects in Karnataka.
“Even in 2028, we will win the Assembly elections. We will come back,” the CM said.
Siddaramaiah added that he would order a forensic examination into the alleged tampering of postal ballots.
