Daijiworld Media Network - Bengaluru (SP)

Bengaluru, Mar 20: A delegation led by Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) working president, Dinesh Gundu Rao, complained to the election commission, accusing Narendra Modi-led union government of misusing powers and bringing pressure on Congress leaders through income tax (IT) officials to change their loyalties to BJP.

Ministers, H M Revanna, M R Seetharam as well as party leader, Ugrappa, were part of the delegation which also comprised of several other leaders. The delegation met the chief election commissioner here on Monday March 19 and handed over a memorandum containing the above allegation.

Dinesh Gundu Rao

In its complaint, the Congress said that the central government by wrongly making use of agencies like IT, enforcement directorate and Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), has been conducting raids on opposition leaders including ministers and legislators. The party said that IT officials have been bringing pressure and using threats against these leaders to leave their parties and join BJP. The complaint points out that raids have already been undertaken against Congress leaders like Ramesh Jarkiholi, D K Shivakumar, Raghu Achar, MTB Nagaraj and Raghu Achar.

"We understand that certain IT officials are active in Hindu outfits. We learn that a person named D G Balakrishna, working in IT department, is an activist of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. These officials work like puppets in the hands of the BJP leaders and conducting raids at their instructions at the time of election," it has been mentioned in the complaint.

The party has charged the IT officers of keeping BJP informed about a month in advance before conducting raids. It said that in the interests of impartial election, such officers need to be acted against and transferred.

Speaking to media persons, Dinesh Gundu Rao repeated the charge that BJP is using IT, enforcement directorate and CBI to further its interests with the aim of defeating the Congress and also denting the self esteem of leaders by giving wide publicity to raids. He said that several income tax officials have been working as agents of BJP and hence his party has approached the election commission with a complaint. He said that through the memorandum, the party has asked the commission to act against erring IT officials, and that the party wanted to sound warning to such officials against indulging in such things.

Dinesh Gundu Rao also said that under the leadership of KPCC, a mega protest would be held in front of IT department office in the city on March 22 with the intention of conveying message to election commission to keep officials working as stooges of BJP outside the state during the election, and to spell out instructions in clear terms to IT, enforcement directorate and CBI to keep their hands off party politics.