Linking IT raids with RS polls not right: Yeddyurappa

Former Karnataka Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa on Thursday said that the Income Tax raid at state's Power Minister D.K. Shivakumar's residence should not be linked with Rajaya Sabha polls in Gujarat.

Yeddyurappa said that Shivakumar is a rich man and is in politics since many years, while adding that one should not prognosticate before the inquiry in the case ends.

"Alleging political vendetta is not correct. The searches are still on. It is too early to say anything. Let us wait for inquiry to get completed," said Yeddyurappa.

"Everybody knows that D.K. Shivakumar is a rich man and is in politics from so many years. These raids should not be linked with Rajya Sabha polls," he added.

Further slamming the uproar created by the Congress party in the Parliament over IT raids, Yeddyurappa said that the BJP never instigated such unwarranted discussions in the Parliament.

"It is very unfortunate that Congress party is protesting against it in the parliament. Such things never happened when the Congress was in power and we were in opposition. Even my house was raided but I kept quiet and cooperated," he added.

The IT department earlier today started raiding house of Karnataka Power Minister DK Shivakumar's father -in-law.

The IT department on Wednesday had raided Shivakumar's residence and at a private resort in Bengaluru where 44 Congress lawmakers from Gujarat are staying.

The Congress on Wednesday created ruckus in both the Houses of Parliament on Wednesday over the IT raids and alleged that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) led Central Government was indulging in political witch-hunt just to defeat Congress candidate Ahmed Patel in Rajya Sabha polls in Gujarat.

Due to the ruckus, the Rajya Sabha was adjourned thrice before being adjourned for the day.

Raising the matter in Rajya Sabha, Congress leader Anand Sharma had said it is now becoming a trend of the Government to blatantly misuse powers of the state.

Another Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad said, "Conduct raids on residences of those people from your party (BJP) who are offering Rs 15 crore.

Congress alleges that the BJP was offering its Gujarat MLAs Rs 15 crore each to resign from Congress.

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah dubbed IT raids at residence of Shivakumar as 'undemocratic'.

Congress has shifted its 44 MLAs from Gujarat to Bengaluru after its six MLAs resigned and joined BJP.

However, Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley denied that the income tax raid at residence Shivakumar has any links with Rajya Sabha polls in Gujarat.

The IT department also maintained that its raid at Karnataka Energy Minister's residence and resort has nothing to do with the Gujarat's Congress MLAs.

-ANI