Will resign willingly if need arises: Union Minister HD Kumaraswamy
Bengaluru, Aug 21: Union Minister H D Kumaraswamy on Wednesday said he will willingly resign if the need arises unlike Chief Minister Siddaramaiah who found fault with Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot’s permission to investigate and prosecute him in the Mysuru Urban Development Authority land allotment 'scam.'
Reacting to the Chief Minister’s allegation that the Governor was not giving consent to prosecute him, Kumaraswamy asked what stops Siddaramaiah from approaching the Supreme Court against him in connection with the alleged scam related to Sri Sai Venkateshwara Minerals.
Lokayukta's Special Investigation Team has once again submitted a proposal to the Governor on Monday seeking permission to file a charge-sheet against Kumaraswamy in the alleged illegal mining lease case.
ALSO READ: Governor can't 'pick and choose' and be 'selective', says CM on prosecution sanction against him
The SIT had first requested Gehlot's nod in November last year to prosecute the Union Minister for Heavy Industries and Steel, who had allegedly granted mining lease to the private firm when he was the Chief Minister in 2007 in violation of law.
The Chief Minister on Wednesday reiterated that the Governor sanctioned in haste investigation and prosecution against him.
Accusing the Governor of discriminating against him, Siddaramaiah said Lokayukta’s recommendation to prosecute Kumaraswamy has been pending with Gehlot since November 2023.
Kumaraswamy, the Union Minister for Heavy Industries and Steel, said he has seen the statements of Virajpet MLA and legal advisor to the Chief Minister A S Ponnanna and some other ministers demanding his resignation.
“I will willingly resign if needed, unlike you (Siddaramaiah) who found fault with the Governor’s permission to prosecute you and commented about the Governor in a derogatory manner. The Karnataka ministers should be ashamed for using such words against the Governor,” he said.
He said: “Don’t you think I could have closed the cases against me in 2018 when I was the Chief Minister?”
Stating that the ruling Congress is opening another case against him, he said he is not afraid of it.
Kumaraswamy said the Lokayukta report against him was sent to the Governor in November last year seeking permission for prosecution only after he started attacking the Congress government on a host of issues, particularly corruption.
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Austrian police detain suspect in case of rat poison found in baby food jars on supermarket shelves
Vienna (AP): Police in eastern Austria say a 39-year-old suspect has been arrested after rat poison turned up in some HiPP baby food jars on supermarket shelves in central Europe.
HiPP, which recalled some of its baby food jars in Austria, Slovakia and the Czech Republic after the case came to light last month, said in a statement Saturday it was “greatly relieved” by the arrest, and would provide further updates as verified details come in.
The Burgenland State Criminal Police Office, under the direction of prosecutors, said a probe was launched after poison turned up in a baby food jar purchased at a supermarket in the city of Eisenstadt on April 18.
It said the suspect was being questioned, and that no further details would be immediately provided. The Burgenland public prosecutor's office has announced an investigation into suspected “intentional endangerment of the public.”
The Austrian Press Agency reported that an expert report on the toxicity of the poison was pending. A total of five tampered baby food jars were seized before they could be consumed, APA reported.
Authorities said previously they believe the tampering occurred in 190-gram (6.7-ounce) jars of baby food made with carrots and potatoes for 5-month-olds that were sold from SPAR supermarkets in Austria.
HiPP responded by recalling all of its baby food jars sold at SPAR supermarkets — which include SPAR, EUROSPAR, INTERSPAR and Maximarkt stores — in Austria as a precaution. Vendors in Slovakia and the Czech Republic also removed all of the brand's baby jars from sale.
The company said the recall was not due to any product or quality defect on its part, and said the jars left its facility in “perfect condition.”
Police said a customer at the time of the discovery had reported that a jar appeared to have been tampered with, but no one had consumed the baby food.
