Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, Karnataka Chief Minister-designate D.K. Shivakumar and caretaker Chief Minister Siddaramaiah in New Delhi on Tuesday.
| Photo Credit: special arrangement

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar sharing a ug during the breakfast meeting in Bengaluru on Thursday.
| Photo Credit: ANI

BJP leader C. T. Ravi, arrested over his controversial remarks towards Karnataka Minister Lakshmi Hebbalkar, is brought to a hospital for medical check-up in Belagavi on December 20, 2024.
| Photo Credit: PTI

Irony died a thousand deaths when the BJP’s State president B.Y. Vijayendra said that men in his party were “not wearing bangles” to stay quiet in the face of “police high handedness” while responding to the arrest of MLC C.T. Ravi. The BJP legislator was arrested for allegedly using a derogatory and sexist word about Minister for Women and Child Development Laxmi Hebbalkar during the recently concluded session of the Legislature.

Karnataka has seen much wrangling between political leaders since Mr. Ravi allegedly used a slur in the Legislative Council hall against Ms. Hebbalkar on December 19. This incident occurred after the council was adjourned following a fracas over Union Minister Amit Shah’s remarks on B.R. Ambedkar. But, the members had stayed on and continued their loud arguments. With the House not in session at that point, there is no “official record” of the alleged slur used, but the video clip has been freely floating around on social media platforms.

Mr. Ravi initially claimed that he had said “frustrate” and the Minister misheard him. Ms. Hebbalkar, however, said that the word, besides being abusive, trivialised her hard work in building a political career. She insisted that it had been heard by many BJP members too, who had privately sympathised with her, but failed to take a moral position beyond party affiliation.

Mr. Ravi was booked under Sections 75 (sexual harassment) and 79 (word, gesture, or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and arrested soon after. He has alleged that he was harassed in police custody, at the behest of Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar. But he was released the following day after approaching the Karnataka High Court. Observing that the police prima facie failed to follow the procedure in arresting the MLC, the court directed the police to release him immediately.

Since the offences charged against him attract imprisonment of less than seven years, the police were obliged to issue a notice to him under Section 35 of the BNS for appearing for questioning before arresting him in a “tearing hurry”, the court said.

Following this, a triumphant Mr. Ravi made it a point to address more than one press conference, sporting a bandage on his head for injuries he allegedly sustained while he was being taken in a police van. Many angry BJP men, including Mr. Vijayendra, rallied behind Mr. Ravi unconditionally, giving rest to their faction feuds.

No doubt the Congress government did not cover itself in glory in handling the situation. For one, as the court pointed out, there were procedural lapses. An impression was created that the Home Minister lacked control over the situation as police acted swiftly. Questions have also been raised on the issue of jurisdiction, given that it occurred within the House and the role of the Chairperson in addressing the episode. While a CID inquiry by the State police is now under way, the Opposition has demanded a judicial probe claiming a “plot to kill” Mr. Ravi.

However, what has lost focus under a mountain of questions on procedure and whataboutery (“But aren’t men in all parties the same?” etc.) is the core issue of the alleged abuse of the lone woman Minister in Karnataka’s Cabinet and one among the only 10 elected women Members of the Legislative Assembly. Casual sexism, cutting across party barriers, is indeed not uncommon in the House or the course of poll campaigns, but that should not make it “normal” or acceptable. Mr. Ravi had in an earlier instance, talking about political opportunism, used the word “nitya sumangali” (a term used to refer to those in Devadasi tradition) and incurred the wrath of a few women members including Ms. Hebbalkar.

The incident raises two questions: Could such remarks have been made in a House with a better gender balance? And why do such incidents not amount to sexual harassment in the workplace?

Given the situation in Karnataka, where new political high dramas unfold daily, and are magnified by private news channels, all issues live intense but fleeting lives. Already, the Ms. Hebbalkar case is fading into the background, with the Opposition now busy mounting pressure on the ruling Congress for a Central Bureau of Investigation inquiry into the suicide of a contractor, allegedly owing to pressure to pay money by the close aide of a Minister. However, one can be sure it is a matter of time before a case similar to that of Ms. Hebbalkar turns up again, like a bad penny.

Bengaluru:

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and his deputy DK Shivakumar on Saturday asserted that the state government will not protect anyone in the illegal money transfer case involving the Karnataka Maharshi Valmiki Scheduled Tribes Development Corporation Ltd and would take action in accordance with law.

The assertion comes hours after the opposition BJP sought a CBI probe into the illegal money transfer case and demanded that Minister of Scheduled Tribes Welfare, B Nagendra be dismissed.

“We will not protect anyone… whoever it may be (involved in the case), we will take action in accordance with law,” Mr Siddaramaiah told reporters in response to a question on a case involving Minister Nagendra and BJP seeking his removal.

The illegal transfer of money came to light after the Accounts Superintendent at the Corporation, Chandrashekhar P, died by suicide on May 26, leaving behind a death note.

It revealed the unauthorised transfer of Rs 187 crore belonging to the corporation from its bank account, and from that, Rs 88.62 crore was illegally moved to various accounts allegedly belonging to “well-known” IT companies and a Hyderabad-based cooperative bank.

Chandrashekhar has named the Corporation’s now suspended Managing Director J G Padmanabh, accounts officer Parashuram G Durugannavar, and Union Bank of India Chief Manager Suchismita Rawal in the note, while also stating that the “Minister” had issued oral orders for transferring the funds.

The state government has constituted a four-member SIT team headed by Manish Kharbikar, Additional Director General of Police, Economic Offences, at the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) in Bengaluru, to conduct the probe.

DK Shivakumar maintained that the government will not protect anyone and no one will be spared.

Addressing reporters here, he said, “The BJP is doing politics, I won’t question them. During the BJP regime too such things have happened. Basavaraj Bommai (former CM) is aware of it, everyone else also knows it… We are investigating the case, we will not spare anyone.”

When pointed out that while in opposition the Congress had sought the then Minister K S Eshwarappa’s resignation following the suicide of a contractor naming him, but is not acting against its own Minister now, Mr Shivakumar said there is no direct reference to Minister Nagendra in this case.

“If any documents or proof or any involvement is found, whatever needs to be done, the government will surely do it. The government is transparent, there is no question of sparing anyone. We will take action. We will protect the interest and safeguard the government. The money is important, our officials are trying to trace it,” he said.

He further said that a couple of days is required.

“After that, the government will definitely take action. Some arrests have been made, actions have already been taken. The Minister has spoken to me and the CM, we are inquiring into it,” he added.

On the demand for a CBI investigation, he said there is a procedure that if more than certain crores of money is involved in a bank fraud case (Rs 3 crore in public sector banks), the case will naturally go to CBI.

“Whether we give it or not. there is a procedure, we also know that, we are ready to cooperate. They (CBI) should also probe without politics. As of now the case is not with the CBI, we are investigating,” he added.

Meanwhile, amid media reports that a bank account named after IT firm Happiest Minds Technologies Ltd, is among the “beneficiaries” of the money embezzled at the Corporation, the company in a statement clarified that the bank account does not belong to it.

“We have absolutely no connection to the bank account or the branch mentioned (RBL Bank, Banjara Hills, Hyderabad, IFSC Code RATN0000341) and this has been confirmed by RBL Bank authorities as well. We vehemently deny these malicious efforts to malign our Company’s reputation,” it said in a statement.

“We are confident that a thorough investigation will reveal the truth and expose those responsible for these false and baseless accusations. We are also pursuing all legal avenues available to us to protect our Company’s reputation,” it added.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)