Isloated Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah relents, hands over case to CBI

BENGALURU: Pushed to the wall by the Opposition and an adverse public opinion, Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah on Monday climbed down several notches from his earlier stand to hand over the case of IAS officer DK Ravi's mysterious death to the CBI.
Much as he claimed that it was not at the behest of the Opposition, it was clear that the CM was desperate to put a lid on the issue that pushed him to a corner and stalled the legislature for a week.

Sources close to him said "it is a setback for a short period but once the CBI comes out with the truth, he will be vindicated." Not hiding his anger, Siddara-maiah told the state assembly that he was pained by how the opposition had politicized a "sad" incident involving the death of an IAS officer. He was initially hesitant because it would affect the morale of the CID, he said. In its five years at the helm, the BJP had not handed over a single case to the CBI, he noted. Protesting these remarks, the BJP staged a walkout even as the CM announced the CBI inquiry .

That Siddaramaiah was fighting forces both within and outside his own party ever since the IAS officer's death became clear when sources in his office revealed that he had made up his mind for a CBI inquiry Wednesday last -on the day Ravi's parents sat on a protest outside the Vidhana Soudha.Apparently, his council of ministers was split on the issue, raising fears in Siddaramaiah's camp that he could be isolated within the government. With some IAS officers defying the government's stand, the pressure mounted further.


KPCC president G Parameshwara, who recently made a bid for the post of deputy CM and failed, made it clear that he would be a thorn in the CM's flesh. He told ET: "If the government was clear that it was not trying to save anyone, or if it wasn't involved, there should have been no hesitation for a CBI probe. This is what I believed," he said.

Former CM M Veerappa Moily said, "the BJP and JD(S) tried to inflict damage. The BJP has developed a love for CBI when they did not agree for it during BS Yeddyurappa's rule. What Siddaramaiah has done has only enhanced his position in the party, because this shows he is very transparent."

Political analyst PS Jayaram believes the episode has dented Siddaramaiah's image. "He has been made to yield to public pressure. The issue here is about the kind of support political leadership should give to the bureaucrats. And the decision to rope in CBI should have been taken early on."