Corridors of Power: Yet another ‘truth test’

Belur Gopalakrishna, former MLA, recently alleged that Hartal Halappa, Sagar BJP MLA, accepted bribes from people indulging in sand mining. The former MLA said he was ready to make the allegation before the presiding deity of Dharmasthala, Manjunatha Swamy, and wanted to know if Mr. Halappa was prepared to deny them before the deity. Mr. Halappa has accepted the challenge and announced that he would visit Dharmasthala to state that neither he nor any member of his family ever took money from miners.

He has fixed February 14 as the day of the “truth test”. He has, however, challenged Mr. Gopalakrishna to be present in Dharmasthala on the day and prove his allegation by bringing people who gave him money. The people of Shivamogga are curious how this drama will unfold. Challenging each other to “truth tests” in front of the Dharmasthala deity has been quite a habit with politicians in Karnataka. One of the more famous episodes was when former Chief Ministers B.S. Yediyurappa and H.D. Kumaraswamy, back in 2011, dared each other to a “truth test” over a corruption allegation. However, the test eventually never happened.

V-Day is D-Day

C.M. Ibrahim (in picture), former Union Minister and Congress MLC, who has recently been lambasting his one-time close friend former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, plans on resigning from the membership of the Legislative Council on Valentine’s Day. He plans to do it by giving a bouquet of flowers to Council chairman Basavaraj Horatti. The former Union Minister has kept everyone guessing on his next move. Asked about his talks with JD(S) leader H.D. Kumaraswamy, Mr. Ibrahim said: “They are examining the horoscope. A ‘mahurtham’ (auspicious day) is not yet fixed.” The H.D. Deve Gowda family, especially H.D. Revanna, is known for not making any moves without consulting astrologers and checking planetary positions.

Treading with caution

There seems to be differences of opinion among the top leaders of the State Congress on the controversial issue of Muslim girls wearing hijab in colleges. While KPCC president D.K. Shivakumar has been cautious in his statements, former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, accompanied by minority leaders, vented his ire against the State Government for denying education to Muslim girls in the name of dress code. Mr. Shivakumar, who has ambitions of becoming the Chief Minister, declined to take a stand on the matter. When asked, he said, “The court has intervened. As party president, I cannot make my stand public. These are sensitive issues involving children, customs, and tradition.”

Sathish G.T.

Nagesh Prabhu

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