BJP Attacks Siddaramaiah With "Declared Absconder" Link, He Rebuts Charge

Bengaluru: With less than a week to go before Karnataka votes in the assembly election, the BJP on Sunday attacked Chief Minister Siddaramaiah over what the party called his meeting with two "declared absconders" wanted for financial fraud, including a person called Vijay Eswaran.

The two men were declared absconders by the Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO) in 2009 and yet the Chief Minister met them during his visit to a summit in China, BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra told reporters in Bengaluru.

"In September 2013, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah went to attend a WEF (World Economic Forum) meeting in China and met two men declared absconders in 2009. The SFIO has called them national threat. Lakhs of crores have been duped by them. There was also a gift package handed over to Mr Siddaramaiah," alleged Mr Patra.

The BJP also posed several questions to the chief minister, including whether he knew Vijay Eswaran and if the latter is not a declared offender.

Mr Patra also sought to know if Mr Siddaramaiah had met Eswaran in China and whether he had asked him to invest in Karnataka.

"What was the gift he gave you? Was it a premium Hublot watch?" the BJP spokesperson sought to know from Mr Siddaramaiah.The Chief Minister rubbished all allegations levelled against him, saying he had addressed an investors' summit in China in 2013 and had met many people.

"I cannot recall who all I met. I went to the investor summit in 2013. Why is the BJP raising it now?" Mr Siddaramaiah told NDTV.

Categorically denying that he knew Vijay Eswaran or had received any gift from him, the Chief Minister hit back at the BJP-led central government. 

"If there is any case against someone who has escaped from India, it's the Government of India that has to take action," said Mr Siddaramaiah.