Bengaluru: Based on the requests from its legislators, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government which was in power in Karnataka from 2019 to May, 2023 withdrew more than a 1,000 criminal cases lodged for violence and also removed as many as 7, 361 rowdy-sheeters from the list, disclosed Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar.
In a chat with the media persons in Bengaluru on Wednesday, Shivakumar, reacting to the criticism from BJP leaders over his letter to drop cases in riots in Hubbali in 2022, said he needs no lessons from the BJP and stated that only cases lodged against innocent persons are looked into and action will be taken within the legal framework.
Continuing, he said, there is a sub-committee and officials concerned will look into and recommend that certain cases could be withdrawn before a decision is made. “Even I face cases which are lodged for political reasons,” said the Deputy Chief Minister.
To BJP leaders, he said, BJP leaders are under the impression that people have forgotten what happened during their regime and revealed that cases or names from rowdy-sheeters were removed on the letters from previous Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai, former minister for Law and Parliamentary Affairs J.C. Maadhuswamy, MLAs Aravind Bellad, K.G. Bopaiah, S.R. Vishwanath, Madalu Virupakshappa among others.
Shivakumar said he was ready to furnish details of who all made recommendation for withdrawal of criminal cases and names from rowdy-sheeters list and stated that the State Government is in no hurry to withdraw the cases.
