After JD(S), the BJP on Sunday continued to pressurise Chief Minister Siddaramaiah-led Congress Government demanding a CBI probe into the death of IAS officer DK Ravi. Senior BJP leaders, including former Chief Minister BS Yeddyurappa, staged a day-long protest in Bengaluru. State BJP president Prahlad Joshi, Union Minister Anantha Kumar, Jagadish Shettar, Eshwarappa, R Ashok, Shobha Karndajle and all the senior leaders along with hundreds of workers took part in the dharna.
He said, “We stick to our demand to give the case to the CBI without further delay. We have already discussed it in the Parliament. We met (Home Minister) Rajnath Singh also. We requested him to talk to the Chief Minister.” Siddaramaiah, who slammed the Opposition for making the case a political issue, said he would submit the interim report of the findings of the CID in the Session and also expected to hand over the case to CBI. However, the BJP said they would not allow the Chief Minister to present the interim report of the CID in the Session on Monday. Siddaramaiah has also been asked by Congress president Sonia Gandhi to hand over the case to the central agency as there is a growing dissent against the Government.
Moreover, a single vacation bench judge on Sunday restrained the Government on making any interim report public relating to this case. Justice S Abdul Nazeer of the Karnataka High court issued emergent notice to State of Karnataka represented by chief secretary, Additional chief secretary, Director General and Inspector General of Police, CID, the respondents and restrained them from making or publishing any interim report or making any public statement pertaining to the death of IAS officer DK Ravi. The court has also asked the respondents to appear on Monday.
BJP leader of the Opposition, Jagdhish Shettar, said Siddaramaiah should give in to the popular demand for a CBI probe immediately instead of waiting to make an announcement in the Karnataka Assembly. In a related development, former Karnataka Chief Minister and JD(S) leader, HD Kumaraswamy, released an audio clipping, that he alleges, is a threatening call made by an elected representative of Kolar to a subordinate of DK Ravi. Kumaraswamy said it was clear from the tape that the MlA was putting pressure on the official to release sand seized from the sand mafia. In the tape, the MlA is heard bullying the official who reported to Ravi, and asking him to release four lorries of seized illegal sand.