Cong believes in justice for all: Shivakumar after meeting Panchamasali Lingayat delegation

Bengaluru, Oct 18 (IANS) Stating that the government doesn’t want injustice to any community, Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar on Friday announced that another round of discussion would be held with the Panchamasali Lingayat delegation to sort out reservation issues.

“Our government believes in justice for all communities. The reservation issue is in court and the government can’t intervene at this juncture. We will hold discussions with Panchamasalis in the days to come,” he said while speaking to reporters after a meeting with leaders of the Panchamasali Lingayat community at the Chief Minister’s home office Krishna in Bengaluru.

He added that the Chief Minister has clearly said that it is not possible to give a timeline for the reservation.

“The previous BJP government hurt many communities in the process of hastening through reservation. The BJP government later filed an affidavit in the court that it would not implement the new reservation. In this backdrop, our government can’t intervene in court matters,” he added.

“The Model Code of Conduct is in effect now and we told the leaders of the Panchamasali community that we would call them for a meeting once the elections are over. We understand their urgency and we will hold discussions with them in the future,” he said.

Asked about statements of Panchamasali leaders that they would continue their protest, he said, “We can’t say anything to those who want to protest.”

On Union Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy’s allegation that SIT was the ‘Shivakumar Investigation Team’, he said: “Kumaraswamy needs to remember me every once in a while, else he will be sleepless. He and his brothers keep remembering me hence. They are searching for my documents, but all my documents are with the CBI. Had he asked me, I would have given it to him myself.”

Replying to queries on ED raids on the MUDA office in Mysuru, he said: “ED may be gathering information, how can you call it a raid? They may ask for certain documents and review them. What else can be done? No tweaking of the documents is possible as all the documents in the case are public already. We will fight this legally and place the truth before the public.”

Asked about his statement that ED raids were politically motivated, he said, “The case is in the court now. As per the information I received, they have asked for certain information and I don’t know whether those documents have been given or not. Perhaps, they may have gone to Muda to collect those documents themselves.”

Referring to statements and counter statements on the revival of the NICE corridor, he said, “Let Kumaraswamy first disclose his assets along the NICE road, I will talk about it at an appropriate time.”

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