No files pending against H D Kumaraswamy, ex-BJP ministers, Karnataka Governor tells Congress

Bengaluru: Karnataka Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot on Saturday burst the ruling Congress’ bubble by saying that he has no files pending with him seeking sanction to prosecute Union Minister H D Kumarawamy and three former BJP ministers.

Over the past few weeks, the Congress had upped the ante against Gehlot by accusing him of “urgency” in sanctioning Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s prosecution, while sitting on similar requests concerning Kumaraswamy, BJP’s Shashikala Jolle, Murugesh Nirani and G Janardhan Reddy.

On Saturday, all Congress lawmakers walked from Vidhana Soudha to Raj Bhavan to mount pressure on Gehlot.

“We urged the Governor that he should treat equally all petitions seeking prosecution sanctions. But he said he has no file pending with him. He said he disposed of all the files. We’ll re-check this. Why is he saying this? He may have sought clarifications,” Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar said.

Asked if the government was unaware that the files were not pending in Raj Bhavan, Shivakumar said: “That’s what the Governor is saying. We’ll look into it.”

According to a Right to Information (RTI) reply to social activist TJ Abraham, who is seeking Siddaramaiah’s prosecution in the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) scam, Gehlot has decided on the prosecution sanction request against Jolle, while sending back files pertaining to Kumaraswamy, Nirani and Reddy.

In Kumarawamy’s case, Raj Bhavan was asked in November 2023 to approve his prosecution. But Gehlot returned the file on July 29, three days after he issued a show-cause notice to Siddaramaiah.

The request to sanction Jolle’s investigation was received in December 2021. The Governor’s decision was conveyed to the concerned authority on August 9 this year. Apparently, he rejected the sanction.

In Nirani’s case, approval for investigation was sought in February 2024. The file was returned the following month. Prosecution sanction of Reddy was sought in May 2024 and it was returned in June.

In its memorandum to Gehlot, the Congress criticised the “conspicuous delay and dereliction” in cases involving Kumaraswamy, Jolle, Nirani and Reddy “despite clear evidence of corruption and wrongdoing” while pointing to “swift action” against Siddaramaiah.

“The people of Karnataka will not tolerate a Governor who fails to uphold the principles of justice and democracy,” the memorandum stated.

According to sources, Gehlot also told the Congress delegation that being a neutral authority, he is reviewing cases against incumbent ministers and lawmakers.