Siddaramaiah claims letter, said to be from him about DK Shivakumar, is fake; BJP, RSS blamed

The three-page-letter with Siddaramaiah’s letterhead, addressed to AICC chief Mallikarjun Kharge, surfaced on social media on Monday.

ByMahesh M Goudar

Published May 10, 2023 | 12:11 AMUpdatedMay 11, 2023 | 2:50 PM

Siddaramaiah Karnataka Elections

Congress Legislative Party leader and former Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah has claimed that the letter written in his name to All India Congress Committee (AICC) president Mallikarjun Kharge complaining about Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president DK Shivakumar was fake.

The three-page letter, on Siddarmaiah’s letterhead and addressed to former Congress president Sonia Gandhi, has been circulating on social networking sites since the evening of Monday, 8 May.

Siddaramaiah was quick to respond. He said that the letter was fake and blamed the BJP.

“Frustrated by the fear of defeat, the BJP wrote a forged letter in my name and spread slander. I have not written any such letter,” he tweeted.

He further said: “Party workers and followers should not fall prey to this false propaganda. My relationship with DK Shivakumar is cordial and efforts are being made to bring enmity. They will not succeed.”

He continued: “I will lodge a police complaint as soon as possible. I will demand action against those who created and spread the fake letter.”

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What the letter said

Since Monday evening, the three-page letter, complaining against KPCC president DK Shivakumar for making independent decisions and announcing himself as the party’s chief ministerial candidate sidelining his followers and working against the interest of the party, has gone viral in social media.

According to the letter, Siddaramaiah accused Shivakumar of acting against the interest of the OBC communities during the distribution of tickets, and denying tickets to many of his followers.

“He managed to pit the OBC community against me and the party,” claimed the letter.

It further claimed that while Siddaramaiah wanted to contest from two constituencies in the interest of the Congress, Shivakumar “succeeded in preventing his contesting from Kolar”.

“He is working against him even in Varuna by making internal understanding with the JD(S) and also funding BJP candidate V Somanna to ensure his defeat,” said the letter.

“Shivakumar is working against the interests of the party by conspiring to defeat his followers by making an internal alliance with the JD(S). I hope the high command will heed to the issue and initiate action,” it added.

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Siddaramaiah reacts

Siddaramaiah termed the letter fake and accused the RSS of making it viral.

In a video statement, Siddaramaiah said: “This is not my letter. Some mischievous people hatched the conspiracy of creating a fake letter with the intention of creating a rift between me and DK Shivakumar.”

He added: “The mischief-mongers of the RSS caused it to go viral on social media. I appeal to all the people to reject this letter.”

Siddaramaiah also said: “I am filing a complaint to find out the miscreants behind this fake letter and take action against them.”

Also read: Do to Siddaramaiah what was done to Tipu, says BJP minister