Janata Dal (Secular) State president and former Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy on Friday said that the government should order Director General of Prisons H.N. Satyanarayana Rao and DIG (Prisons) D. Roopa to go on leave to ensure an impartial probe into allegations of corruption in the police department.
Mr. Kumaraswamy told presspersons here that truth in the alleged payment of ₹ 2 crore by AIADMK interim general secretary V.K. Sasikala to the prison officials, including the Director General (Prisons), for allowing her preferential treatment, can be unearthed only if the two senior police officers are asked to go on leave till the completion of the probe.
Alleging that jail authorities in Parappana Agrahara central prison get ₹ 1 crore bribe every month for providing various facilities to inmates, Mr. Kumaraswamy said that the government has no control over senior officials in the State. These cases indicated the level of corruption in the administration, he charged.
The government’s image was marred by such bribery charges against senior officials, he said. “Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, who also holds the Home portfolio, talks volumes about transparency and corruption-free administration, but he too lowered the dignity of the Chief Minister’s office,” the JD (S) leader claimed.
Meanwhile, Mr. Siddaramaiah has asked retired IAS officer Vinay Kumar to probe into bribery charges and submit a report within a month.
