G.T. Deve Gowda hits back at H.D. Revanna for claiming that H.D. Kumaraswamy prevented his arrest in 2017

Mr. Gowda said he would confront Mr. Revanna during the coming winter session of the State Legislature next month and seek a clarification from him on the statements he has made before the media.

Senior JD(S) leader G.T. Deve Gowda has hit back at party leader H.D. Revanna for claiming that he and his son G.D. Harish Gowda would have been arrested in a false case foisted against him by the erstwhile Congress government in 2017 had it not been for the intervention of Union Minister for Heavy Industries and Steel H.D. Kumaraswamy.

Addressing a press conference in Mysuru on Thursday (November 28, 2024), Mr. Gowda took serious exception to Mr. Revanna’s false claims and said neither he nor his son were ever involved in any illegal activity that warranted their arrest.

Pointing out that such public statements by the JD(S) leader representing Holenarsipura Assembly constituency will send a wrong message to the public, Mr. Gowda said he would confront Mr. Revanna during the coming winter session of the State Legislature scheduled to be held in Belagavi next month and seek a clarification from him on the statements he has made before the media.

‘Did not seek help’

Mr. Gowda recalled that he was appointed the Chairman of the Karnataka Housing Board (KHB) by former Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa after he had joined the BJP. During those days, the local Congress and JD(S) leaders had falsely accused him of irregularities in KHB and sought an inquiry against him. Despite a sustained defamation campaign against him by the local Congress and JD(S) leaders, Mr. Gowda said he had not approached any leader and sought help.

Responding to a question whether Mr. Revanna was alluding to the possibility of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, who also headed the erstwhile Congress government in 2017, to be behind the efforts to arrest him, Mr. Gowda said Mr. Siddaramaiah may have opposed him politically, but would not stoop to such pettiness and conspire to send him to jail.

When Mr. Gowda’s attention was drawn to Mr. Revanna’s confession that it was he who came in the way of the then Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy handing over power to BJP during their earlier alliance in 2006-07, Mr Gowda said it was a fact that Mr. Revanna had prevailed upon former Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda against transfer of power to the BJP.

When asked for the reason, Mr. Gowda claimed that Mr. Revanna harboured ambitions of becoming the Deputy Chief Minister under Mr. Yediyurappa in the BJP-JD(S) coalition government, but the party MLAs were in favour of Mr. Kumaraswamy taking on the responsibility. When it became clear that he was not becoming the DCM, Mr. Revanna prevailed upon the JD(S) supremo to break the alliance, said Mr. Gowda.

Published - November 28, 2024 06:23 pm IST