Let BJP Send Legal Notice, Says Ex-CM Siddaramaiah over Covid-19 Corruption Allegations in Karnataka

Former Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Saturday ridiculed the ruling BJP's threat to sue him for alleging Rs 2,000-crore corruption in coronavirus management in the state.

"Let them send a legal notice. Am I the one to be afraid of notices? Am I not a lawyer? Don't I know what weightage such notices carry?" Siddaramaiah told reporters in Mysuru.

Siddaramaiah, also the Congress Legislative Party leader, was reacting to BJP's state general secretary and MLC N Ravi Kumar's statement on Friday that the party would send him a legal notice.

Siddaramaiah had last week alleged that the total expenditure of the government relating to COVID-19 was Rs 4,167 crore of which at least Rs 2,000 crore was allegedly pocketed by Ministers and officials.

The BJP not only dismissed the charges but also decided to sue the Congressman.

The Congress leader mocked that the question asked to the government is responded by the BJP with a legal notice.

"I had accused the government of corruption in COVID-19 management but there is someone called Ravi Kumar who says he has sent me a legal notice. Let him send it. We will face it," Siddaramaiah said.

Ravi Kumar had also questioned Siddaramaiah's competence to speak about corruption when he could not answer where he got the expensive Swiss watch from.

In reaction, Siddaramaiah said the case is now a closed chapter after the anti-corruption bureau gave him a clean chit.

"I have returned the watch to the government," he said.

Then he sought to know whether he should also dig out the previous corruption charges involving Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa.

Ravi Kumar had also stated that Siddaramaiah does have the moral high ground to talk of corruption while sitting with Congress state chief D K Shivakumar by his side, who had been to jail on corruption charges.

Reacting to the charge, Siddaramaiah sought to know what morality has the BJP to ask him.

Defending Shivakumar, Siddaramaiah said the cases do not relate to corruption but political vengeance.