The IT department has also raided Karnataka energy minister DK Shivakumar's residence in Kanakapura. The minister is the in-charge of hospitality for Gujarat Congress MLAs in Bengaluru. The raids were carried out at 39 locations including at his house.
However, IT dept Sources have told ABP News that the investigative raid was over a suspected bribery case involving DK Shivakumar and wasn't not aimed at Gujarat Congress MLAs or at Eagleton Golf Resort. He was summoned in March after IT after his name was found in diary of Congress MLC Govind Raju. The authorties wern't convinced with his replies during his questioning then.
The IT dept recovered Rs 5 crore cash from Shivakumar's Safdarjung Enclave residence in a similar raid in the national capital. Rs 2.5 were seized from other properties of his.
The August 8 elections to the Rajya Sabha has become a prestige issue for both the Congress and the ruling BJP. While Congress president Sonia Gandhi's political secretary Ahmed Patel has been fielded from Gujarat, the BJP's Shah and Smriti Irani are in the fray from the state.
The Congress is seeing in the desertions by the MLAs a BJP plot to queer the pitch for Patel.
Karnataka's energy minister D.K. Shivakumar, the usual go-to man for such operations, has been entrusted with the job of keeping the 42 MLAs hemmed in. Since Shivkumar was in Singapore, his younger brother and Bangalore (rural) MP D.K. Suresh had been given the charge of providing all facilities to the MLAs from Gujarat.
Slamming the IT raid, Congress leader Sanjay Nirupam said Amit Shah is using all the central machinery to stop Ahmed Patel's bid to the Rajya Sabha.
“It is clear that the BJP was involved in horse trading in Gujarat. When Amit Shah became incapable of using notes, he brought NOTA. When we protested that, he brought in central agencies to harass the Opposition. This is highly unfortunate; it is being viewed by the masses. Amit Shah is using illegal means to stop the election of Ahmed Patel to Rajya Sabha, he is taking this contest very personally,” Nirupam said.
Defending the IT raid, Arun Jaitley responding to the uproar by Congress members said, "a search was carried out by IT to interrogate a Karnataka minister who was at the resort. No Congress MLA was questioned. The resort doesn't hold any immunity where authorities can't enter."
BJP leader Prem Shukla said if the IT department has suspected black money being distributed in the resort then it is bound to take effective action.
“Congress is completely baffled. It has brought its MLAs to Bengaluru to have a gala time and is questioning IT dept. which is simply doing its job. DK Shivakumar can’t be let off if he is arranging black money at the resort. Action will be taken,” Prem Shukla, BJP said.