Daijiworld Media Network – Beltangady (SP)

Beltangady, Jun 13: Padmanabha Prasanna Kumar, who claims himself to be the president of Karnataka Janata Party (KJP) in spite of Yeddyurappa's repeated insistence that KJP stands dissolved, said in a press conference held today at the Press Club here that he was deceived by former Karnataka chief minister, B S Yeddyurappa, and other leaders including Shobha Karandlaje.

Kumar claimed that he had founded KJP at Idagunji in Uttara Kannada district on August 8, 2008. "After coming to know that I had formed a party and built it, Yeddyurappa, who had left BJP and was looking to form a new party, contacted me. I was taken to Yeddyurappa's home in Dollars Colony Bangalore by Dhananjay Kumar, where I was told that I would be offered cash or position in the state legislature or post in Rajya Sabha at my will in exchange for relinquishing the party in his favour.

"Trusting his assurances and the words of Shobha Karandlaje and other leaders, I enrolled Dhanajay Kumar into my party on November 9, 2012, duly making him ad hoc president. In course of time, as already planned by them, Yeddyurappa and other leaders sidelined established members and leaders of KJP and occupied important positions. My protests to illegal actions did not go well with them. After Dhananjay Kumar resigned from the position on December 9, 2012, Yeddyurappa and other leaders close to him including Karandlaje visited my home, and after luring me with offers of prominent positions, Yeddyurappa got elected as KJP president at the rally organized at Haveri," he said.

Kumar also insisted that after he refused to sign a letter as required by the Central Election Commission, the KJP leaders forged his signature in a letter sent to the commission which announced that Yeddyurappa had been made party president.

"I was hounded and humiliated thereafter for my refusal to sign this letter. During the assembly election, these leaders collected crores of rupees from original KJP functionaries by doling out lucrative promises, but failed to make impressive gains in the election. Thereafter, we expelled these leaders from the party for anti party activities. Still, these leaders, through fake affidavit filed with the Central Election Commission, announced merger of KJP with BJP. They also got the assembly speaker to announce that these two parties had merged. I was then kidnapped through hired goondas and left in Badarpur on UP border," he said.

Kumar also added that he had lost huge amounts of money to finance rallies and other organizational activities of the party, by way of selling his house, jewellery, etc.

He added that a kidnap case filed by him in Badarpur police station and complaint made to Bangalore police commissioner relating to the incident were ignored. He rued that the BJP leaders continue to mentally harass him by making false statements of having paid hefty amounts to him. He revealed that he has come here to pray to Lord Manjunatheshwara of Dharmasthala to seek the Lord's blessings to get back the money, and honour he had lost so far relating to the above incidents and to beseech the Lord to ensure that he gets justice for the humiliation he suffered, and the guilty face fury of divine forces.