Bangalore: Even as the month of `Shravana' ends in four days, the deadline set by the Bellary MLC, G. Janardhan Reddy, to present "concrete evidence" on his bribery charge against Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy and two of his Cabinet colleagues, the whole brouhaha may end in a damp squib, according a senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader.

However, there are a few in both the Janata Dal (Secular) and the BJP who are worried about the ramifications Mr. Reddy's exposé might have.

The senior BJP leader Araga Jnanendra told The Hindu that Mr. Reddy's threat would have no impact on the stability of the coalition government, as he believed that there was no evidence at all. The third-time MLA for Tirthahalli said Mr. Reddy was only trying to "make mischief" without any supporting evidence. "Barring this aberration, the unity of the party is intact," he said.

Mr. Reddy, according to Mr. Jnanendra, is a partner of Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy's son in the mining business in the neighbouring state. Mr. Rajasekhara Reddy and Congress leaders in the State were using the MLC to "kill two birds with one stone." But, they would not succeed in breaking the Janata Dal (S), the BJP or the coalition set-up. "There is no cassette containing any evidence against any leader or Minister," he said.

Asked about reports that BJP general secretary H.N. Ananth Kumar, MP, was instigating Mr. Reddy's allegation, Mr. Jnanendra flatly rejected the suggestion. "In fact, Mr. Ananth Kumar admonished Mr. Reddy for taking undue advantage of the confidence reposed in him by senior leaders of the party." Mr. Ananth Kumar, he said, had also told Mr. Reddy not to forget that his family had grown politically in the district because of their association with the BJP.

Mr. Jnanendra denied that Mr. Ananth Kumar would do anything to destabilise the coalition government.

Refuses to comment

When contacted for his views on the issue, Mr. Ananth Kumar refused to be drawn into any discussion. He said he was a member of the coordination committee of the two coalition partners and he would make known his views to the committee and not to the media.

Mr. Jnanendra, when asked about his non-induction into the Cabinet, said the party had come to power unexpectedly for the first time in the South. He would prefer to be in the government only when the party came to power on its own. Now he was concentrating on developing his constituency, he added.

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