Suspected JD(S) supporters attacked the residence of a key aide of Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa after he made allegations of land grabbing against former Prime Minister and their party chief H D Deve Gowda.
Police said the supporters pelted stones at the house of Yeddyurappa’s Political Secretary B J Puttaswamy last night, damaging window panes and also a car, hours after he levelled the charge.
They also raised slogans against the Yeddyurappa government and Mr. Puttaswamy, who yesterday released some documents alleging that Mr. Gowda and his family members grabbed 82.01 acres of land in Hassan district, the JD(S) chief’s home district.
Police said they are investigating the matter.
Allegations of land scams have been flying thick and fast between the BJP and the opposition, particularly JD(S) which has been targeting the Chief Minister over denotification of lands and allotment of prime plots to his family members.
Angered by the JD(S) charges, Mr. Yeddyurappa has vowed “not to rest” till he exposed the “misdeeds” of the Mr. Deve Gowda family and decimated the JD(S) to ensure that only the BJP and Congress remained in the State.
The government has ordered a judicial probe into land scam allegations that covers a 16 year period, bringing the regimes of Mr. Gowda’s son H D Kumaraswamy, S M Krishna and Dharam Singh, as also Mr. Deve Gowda himself under its ambit.
Targeting Mr. Deve Gowda, the State cabinet also on Monday decided to hold a CID probe into alleged corruption and irregularities in the Upper Krishna Irrigation project during the JD(S) chief’s tenure as Chief Minister.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (Central Division) G Ramesh said 24 persons, including JD(S) workers, have been arrested for attacking Mr. Puttaswamy’s residence at Vyalikaval.
“They will be charged for threatening Mr. Puttaswamy’s life, indulging in rioting and damaging property,” he said.
The 24-member group had gheraoed Mr. Puttaswamy as soon as he alighted from his car and after threatening him, they barged into the compound, police said.
Shouting slogans against Mr. Yeddyurappa and in favour of JD(S) State unit president H D Kumaraswamy, the group resorted to stone pelting damaging pots, two cars and some window panes, police said, adding Mr. Puttaswamy somehow managed to get inside his residence, otherwise he would have been injured.
Those arrested would be produced before the eighth Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate court today, Mr. Ramesh said.
