Bengaluru (Karnataka) [India], February 4 : Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Janata Dal (Secular) leaders staged a protest in the Karnataka Legislative Assembly house on Tuesday to demand the resignation of Excise Minister RB Timmapur for alleged corruption in his department.
Speaking to ANI, BJP MLA Mahesh Tenginkai alleged corruption charges against the Excise Minister, vowing that the party will protest overnight and continue demanding his resignation when the Speaker arrives on Wednesday.
"There are charges of corruption against Excise Minister R.B. Timmapur...even then he's denying saying that it didn't happen." he claimed.
"We will stage a day and night protest in the assembly, which has begun and would go on till the morning and continue even after the Speaker arrives...We will sleep in the Vidhana Soudha tonight and protest. Our demand is his resignation." he added.
BJP State President B.Y. Vijayendra also alleged that the excise minister was involved in a multi-crore liquor scam which happened last month, claiming that an audio clip incriminates him.
"It's more than a 6,000 crore liquor scam that had taken place last month, and the audio clip that had emerged has clearly mentioned the conversation between the district excise commissioner as well as the agent, where the officer clearly mentioned the name of the minister, the excise minister," he alleged.
"The BJP and the JD(S) have demanded the resignation of the excise minister. We demanded the resignation on the floor of the house," he stated.
Taking aim at Chief Minister Siddaramiah, he accused the CM of protecting the excise minister, further claiming that Karnataka has become an "ATM for the Congress high command".
"Since the Chief Minister himself is backing the excise minister, it's known to everybody that Karnataka has become an ATM for the Congress high command. Hence, the entire cabinet is behind the excise minister. Our demand is that the Chief Minister should accept the resignation of the excise minister," he stated.
Hitting back at the opposition leaders, Congress MLA Ashok Pattan said, "They have no value for the rules."
He accused them of "cooking up stories" about the Excise Minister, clarifying, "The Chief Minister would have taken action if there had been something wrong."
On January 23, BJP MLA and Leader of Opposition R Ashoka demanded the resignation of the Karnataka Excise Minister Ramappa Timmapur after senior officers from his department were caught allegedly accepting a bribe for issuing a bar licence.
R Ashoka alleged that Minister Ramappa Timmapur was involved in the scandal.
"He collected the money from the wine shops, bars, and liquor. They collected between Rs 2000 and Rs 3000 crores for the Assam, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu elections. It's a big scandal. We demanded the resignation of the excise minister," he said.
"We will fight for the resignation if not the CM has to resign," he added.
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