New Delhi, Oct 24: Senior Karnataka Congress leader D K Shivakumar met party chief Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi on Thursday and thanked them for extending support to him, a day after he was released on bail by the Delhi High Court in a money laundering case.
He also met senior party colleague K C Venugopal and advocate Mukul Rohatgi during the day.
Shivakumar, the Congress's all-weather troubleshooter, was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on September 3 in a money laundering case. He was in Tihar jail under judicial custody for 50 days.
"I have not done any mistake. I have people's support. I extend my sincere thanks to everyone who have stood beside me in the most difficult times," Shivakumar told reporters after meeting the party leaders.
"Leaders from many parties, including TMC, CPI, CPI(M) and Janata Dal have supported me. Their support, love and faith have given strength to me," he added.
His brother DK Suresh, who is also a Congress MP, was present during the meeting with the Gandhis.
"I am a law abiding citizen. I am a seven-time MLA in the state. We have framed the law and respect also. I have declared what the Election Commission has sought," he Shivakumar said.
He said that he is co-operating in the investigation.
"The moment I received summons, I did not waste time and responded to all queries. I will continue to do so in the future. I have told my daughter to do the same. She is educated and asked her to respond," he said.
Shivakumar, however, said that his mother has problem with language and age-related issues. The ED had summoned his mother Gowramma (85) and wife Usha to appear before it on October 15 and 17, respectively. Gowramma had skipped it.
He said he plans to meet his lawyers and other party colleagues before leaving for Bengaluru during the weekend.
AICC general secretary and in-charge of Karnataka K C Venugopal said, "Release of Shivakumar has given strength to the party."
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Dhanbad (Jharkhand) (PTI): At least four workers died after being buried under coal slurry in Jharkhand's Dhanbad district on Saturday, a police official said.
The incident took place at Moonidih coal washery in the command area of Bharat Coking Coal Limited (BCCL).
"Bodies of all four workers were dug out of debris during a rescue operation," Putki police station in-charge Waqar Hussain told PTI.
The incident took place when coal slurry was being loaded into trucks by workers, during which a large chunk of slurry fell and trapped several workers underneath, officials said.
The deceased have been identified as Manik Bauri, Dinesh Bauri, Deepak Bauri, and Hemlal Gope.
Meanwhile, the family members of the deceased and local villagers placed the bodies in front of the washery gate and began a protest.
They demanded compensation, jobs for dependents and action against those responsible for the incident.
Police and administration officials are trying to pacify the protesters, an official said.
