Kumaraswamy accuses head of Lokayukta SIT of graft, corruption

Former Karnataka chief minister and Union minister HD Kumaraswamy accused the Additional Director General of Police (ADGP) M Chandrashekhar and the head of the special investigation team (SIT) of the Karnataka Lokayukta probing a 2007 land denotification case of corruption and extortion.

Kumaraswamy called for Chandrashekhar’s suspension and accused the Congress government of misusing government machinery for political purposes. The allegations came after the Lokayukta police questioned Kumaraswamy on Friday for close to an hour-and-a-half in connection with the 2007 case. The case is related to 1.11 acres of land at Gangenahalli in northern Bengaluru which was acquired by the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) for a layout.

Kumaraswamy produced several documents to back his claims, including a complaint from a junior police officer accusing Chandrashekhar of demanding ₹20 crore, and another complaint lodged with former home secretary Rajneesh Goel accusing the ADGP of harassment.

“Chandrashekhar is using his position to settle personal scores,” Kumaraswamy said.

He also alleged that Chandrashekhar had requested permission to question officials from the Governor’s office regarding leaks related to a pending prosecution sanction against the former CM. “Which post has Chandrashekhar been promised by the government? Why is there no action against him? The police force is being misused for political vendetta,” Kumaraswamy charged.

“Chandrashekhar has sought permission from Lokayukta ADGP Manish Karbekar to probe officials in Governor’s secretariat on info leaks. Who is Chandrashekhar? On whose directions is he acting? Is it the CM or other ministers? This indicates that the police force is being misused by government,” he said.

The Union minister also accused Chandrashekhar of being involved in a racket led by businessman Vijay Tata, where large sums of money were extracted from merchants and builders. “An FIR has been filed against Chandrashekhar, but no action has been taken. Vijay Tata extorted more than ₹100 crore from PACL Ltd with Chandrashekhar’s help. He even owns an illegal 38-storey building near Manyata Tech Park,” Kumaraswamy alleged.

Chandrashekhar is originally an IPS officer of the Himachal Pradesh cadre. He was selected as part of the Himachal Pradesh cadre in 1998 but later came to Karnataka on deputation for five years. “He falsely claimed that the weather conditions in Himachal were unsuitable and created fake documents to continue in Karnataka,” Kumaraswamy claimed.

Kumaraswamy went on to announce that he would be submitting all relevant documents to the Union home secretary and would formally file a complaint against Chandrashekhar. “I would like to ask DG&IGP Alok Mohan, what is your intelligence (department) doing? Why hasn’t this officer been suspended yet?” he questioned.

In response to these serious accusations, ADGP Chandrashekhar, in a letter to his colleagues at Lokayukta, dismissed the claims as “false and malicious” and aimed at obstructing the work of the Lokayukta SIT. “An accused in crime number 16/4 of the SIT, HD Kumaraswamy, at a press conference made false and malicious allegations and threats. As you know, the SIT had sought the prosecution sanction of the accused from the competent authority. This accused is on bail... he has done this to deter us from discharging our duties. It appears that his objective is to create fear in the minds of officers of SIT by attacking me,” Chandrashekhar stated in his letter.

The ADGP further told his team that they would continue their work undeterred by political pressure. “But, an accused, however high and mighty he may be, is an accused. Let us not get demotivated by such allegations and threats. I, as head of the SIT, promise you that I will work without fear or favour and bring to justice all criminals and accused in our cases. I also promise you that I will protect you from external influences.”

Chandrashekhar concluded his letter by quoting Irish writer George Bernard Shaw: “Never wrestle with a pig because you’ll both get dirty, and the pig likes it.” He added, “If we engage in a fight with pigs, we end up dirty because pigs thrive in filth. So, we should not wrestle with pigs. Satyameva Jayate.”

When asked about allegations by Kumaraswamy against Lokayukta ADGP, chief minister Siddaramaiah said, “Kumaraswamy has made mistakes and hence he makes false allegations against others. It is not right to comment about officials. I wouldn’t want to react to Kumaraswamy’s statements.”