A statement by Sumalatha, Independent candidate from Mandya taking on the Chief Minister’s son, Nikhil Kumaraswamy, has now kicked up a storm.
At Somanahalli during her campaign on Wednesday, she had said that people had massed ill-gotten wealth and “the Centre is watching”. She had said that it would all come out in time.
JD(S) leaders, including Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy, on Thursday interpreted the statement as she having prior information of the I-T raids. “A BJP-supported Independent candidate makes a statement of the Central government having information of thousands of crores hours before the raids and people argue the raids were non-partisan,” Mr. Kumaraswamy said.
On Thursday, Ms. Sumalatha said she was speaking about D.K. Shivakumar, a Minister facing heat from the I-T Department and the Enforcement Directorate, and that she did not have any prior knowledge of the I-T raids.
She said her detractors were linking her name with the raids and it was unwarranted. “It is being conducted by the I-T Department and I feel amused that they imagine I have such clout as to influence an I-T raid,” she said.
In reply to a question, she said the JD(S) had lost sympathy for all the outbursts and personal attacks on her and would now enact a drama on the I-T raids to gain public sympathy by stating that she was behind them.