BALLARI: In a sudden twist in the tale of excise minister H Y Meti allegedly seeking sexual favours from an Ayurvedic doctor, RTI activist Rajashekhar Mulali, who claimed that he was threatened by supporters of the minister, received a notice from the local police even as he was provided protection, here on Monday.
In the notice, Mr Mulali has been asked to answer six questions though a FIR has not been registered even four days after he lodged a complaint at Gandhi Nagar police station, alleging that he was threatened by supporters of Mr. Meti, and warned him not to release the CD in which the doctor made allegations against Mr Meti.
In the notice, Mr. Mulali has been asked to reply to the following questions: where was he headed when he was allegedly threatened by some men on December 8, the time and place where he was threatened, why he decided to take that route, where was he before he set out in that direction, who and how many threatened him, their language, and a detailed description of each member.
Besides, he was also asked who were tailing him for the last eight days and where, when, at what time. Speaking to the media on Monday, Mr Mulali said he did not nurse any grudge against the minister, had not sought any favours from him, and did not belong to any political party.
He said that he had watched the alleged CD involving the minister and the lady doctor, but does not have a copy of the CD. Mr Mulali said that he would wait for the state government to initiate action against Mr Meti in connection with the CD case and then meet KPCC president Dr G Parameshwar to explain everything he knew about Mr Meti and the CD. “In case, the KPCC president does not act, I will approach top AICC leaders,” he added.
Siddaramaiah & Co defend Meti
A day after excise minister H.Y. Meti’s name surfaced in a sex CD scandal, CM Siddaramaiah on Monday reacted to the controversy remarking that the state government will not delay in taking disciplinary action against the former by even a minute if the alleged CD is released in the public domain and is found to be true.
Ministers Kagodu Thimmappa, Basavaraj Rayareddy and K.J. George came out in strong defence of Mr Meti. The Congress and Mr Meti got a shot in the arm with JD(S) deputy floor leader in the Assembly, Y.S.V. Datta too cautiously batting for his ex-colleague in JD(S).
Speaking to reporters here, Mr Siddaramaiah said, “The question is not about who has done it? Whether Mr Meti or anyone else. This is definitely a blunder. I will not even take a minute to initiate action once the CD is released.”
He quickly added that there is no question of protecting anyone as this is an issue concerning morality. “RTI activist, Rajashekhar Muloli had been making claims that he has seen such a CD. If so, then let the CD be made public. I have not yet sought any explanation from Mr Meti on this issue,” he said replying to media queries.
Mr Thimmappa said, “The episode appears to be a blackmail tactic. I feel that these tactics are becoming more common now.” According to him, Mr Meti is trustworthy than the RTI activist.
