BJP hand seen behind ‘fake letter’ against Karnataka minister

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Monday wondered whether the BJP or its “brother” was behind the “fake letter” accusing Agriculture Minister N Chaluvarayaswamy of demanding bribe from officers after the governor asked the government to probe the complaint. In the letter, seven assistant agriculture directors of Mandya district have accused the Chaluvarayaswamy of demanding Rs 6 to 8 lakh from the agriculture officers and employees.

The complainants in the letter threatened to end their lives along with their family members if such corruption is not stopped. After receiving the letter, Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot referred it to Chief Secretary Vandita Sharma on August 1 to look into it and take action as per the rules.

Reacting to the development, CM Siddaramaiah tweeted, “It has come out that the letter in circulation in the public domain is fake. The joint agriculture director has already clarified that no officers in the district have written such a letter.” “However we will review the matter and investigate, if necessary,” he added. “The leaders of BJP, are you the creator of such a fake letter spreading slander against the government or your brother?” he tweeted.

The “brother” jibe is believed to be a reference to JD(S) leader and former chief minister H D Kumaraswamy. Agriculture Minister N Chaluvarayaswamy too said the letter to the governor against him appears to be fake and said that he would try to ascertain the authenticity of the letter.

Chaluvarayaswamy said that he spoke to the Agriculture Joint Director of Mandya district V S Ashoka, who said it was a fake letter. Meanwhile, Ashoka on Monday convened a meeting with the assistant directors of all taluks and enquired with them whether they wrote any letter to the governor.

“They all said in unison that they have not written any letter to the Governor,” he told PTI. The minister said, “It appears to be a fake letter. Some people are trying to dig out something about me. I will ask the secretary of our department to investigate it.”