Shivakumar 'kidnapped' 9-year-old girl for property, claims former PM Deve Gowda

Chikkamagaluru (Karnataka), April 17 (IANS) In a sensational allegation against Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar, JD-S supremo and former Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda on Wednesday accused the Congress leader of having a 9-year-old girl kidnapped to get her father's property transferred to his name.

Interacting with media persons here, Deve Gowda made the allegation in response to a question on Shivakumar’s appeal to the community to strengthen his hands.

"Why? They (Shivakumar) got a 9-year-old girl kidnapped and got the property in their name, that’s why," he said, adding that he has records to prove his allegations.

Deve Gowda also said that the owner of the property had won his case in the Supreme Court and Shivakumar had suffered a setback.

Elaborating on the allegations, he said: "One person from the US had purchased the property to establish an IT company near Bidadi town in the outskirts of Bengaluru. These persons went to him with the false sale deed. They approached the High Court and the Supreme Court. The courts did not entertain them. Later, they get the daughter of the person kidnapped."

“Their 9-year-old girl was abducted and kept in the house located next to the Gangamma Thimmaiah hall in Bengaluru. They kept the girl blindfolded for nine days and told her father that if he wanted his child, he needed to give the property to them. The mother pleaded with her husband to give away the property to them and bring back the child. When the father went to meet his daughter where she was kept, they brought her before him and removed her blindfold. As soon as the child saw her father, she was taken inside again. I have records in front of me," Deve Gowda alleged.

Gowda’s son, and former CM H.D. Kumaraswamy, who is contesting as the NDA candidate from Mandya, had also made the same allegation earlier and Shivakumar had refuted them. With Deve Gowda himself repeating the allegations, the issue has again come into focus ahead of the coming Lok Sabha elections.