Daijiworld Media Network - Mangaluru (ANK)

Mangaluru, Jul 24: Former minister and Congress leader Ramanath Rai on Saturday July 24 hit out at MP and state BJP president Nalin Kumar Kateel over the viral audio clip that purportedly shows him discussing a possible leadership change in Karnataka, and demanded a probe into the matter.

In the audio clip, Nalin Kateel is allegedly heard saying that the entire team of ministers Eshwarappa and Jagadish Shettar would be removed, and though there were three names for chief minister's post, they would not be considered. However, Kateel has strongly denied that it was his voice in the audio and has lodged a complaint.

On Saturday, Congress leader Ramanath Rai took potshots at BJP MLA and said, "We have MLAs who are not able to recognize the voice of MP Nalin Kumar Kateel who has been serving from 15 years. Can we expect these MLAs to respond to the voice of the public?

"The MP has admitted that the government is corrupt on the audio clip which went viral on social media. It is undoubtedly MP Nalin Kumar Kateel's voice," Rai said.

Urging for a probe in the matter, Rai said, "The police commissioner is an expert in handling cases relating to social media, but probe into this case has been delayed. The audio clip needs to be probed. Whenever BJP commits a mistake they blame the opposition. It happend in Nalin's audio case as well."

Commenting on the controversial Pegasus Project which revealed that prominent people in several countries including India were allegedly spied on by governments, Rai said, "In Isreal probe has been ordered into the Pegasus case, but in India the government has rejected any suggestion for probe while completely misusing the Israeli company's software. Pegasus is a serious issue. If the government is still alive they need to voluntarily order an investigation.

Rai also criticized the government on ED raids conducted on Dainik Bhaskar and Bharath Samachar soon after the two media reported on the Pegasus controversy.