Bengaluru, Oct 24 A Delhi-based man was arrested in connection with uploading of a video purportedly showing a sting operation targeting former Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on social media, marking the first arrest in the case, police said on Saturday.
The accused, identified as Ritesh Pandey, was apprehended by Bengaluru Police’s Central Crime Branch (CCB) in Delhi and brought to the city for questioning, they said.
The police is probing his alleged links to a second-hand mobile phone, suspected to have been used to upload the alleged sting operation video, official sources said, adding that they are also examining its digital trail to identify the uploader and establish how the video was circulated on social media, and those behind it.
The police are also trying to establish who was involved in recording the video, they said.
Pandey was subsequently produced before the metropolitan magistrate court here, which granted him bail, subject to the condition that he will cooperate with the investigation, according to officials.
Last month, two videos containing serious allegations against Siddaramaiah were uploaded on YouTube. The Congress leader subsequently moved the court and obtained an injunction barring the press from reporting on the videos. He has also lodged a police complaint seeking an investigation.
Siddaramaiah had on Friday termed the alleged sting operation targeting him as “totally concocted”, saying it was intended to blackmail him and demanded a fair investigation to bring out the truth and identify those behind it.
His son and Minister Yathindra Siddaramaiah had alleged that people from his own party, Congress, were behind a purported ‘sting operation’ aimed at tarnishing his father’s image.
Yathindra claimed that the video related to the alleged operation appeared to indicate the involvement of a woman from the Congress who wanted a party ticket from Puttur, as well as the head of a media organisation.
Meanwhile, pointing out that Siddaramaiah had expressed complete confidence into the probe into his complaint alleging a conspiracy against him, state Home Minister Priyank Kharge said, it is only a matter of time before those behind the alleged sting operation are exposed.
Speaking to reporters, he said, “Whoever is involved in the criminal conspiracy, where it took place, how it happened, who conducted the sting operation, why it was conducted, how the material came into someone’s hands after so many years, how it was suddenly uploaded, and how it was publicised — all these aspects will be investigated. We will examine everything from the very beginning until the present. We will expose everything in a few days.”
Police must conduct the investigation transparently, honestly and as quickly as possible, he said. “They are working on it; the investigation is on without any interference or political pressure from anyone, and it will be completed.”
To a question on allegations that Congress members were involved in this case, the minister said that is already evident from the material available and faces visible, and they have been subjected to investigation.
“It is quite clear who is involved and what has happened. There is no need for me to spell it out separately. We (police) have summoned people involved and questioned them….Everyone whose name has been mentioned in the case has already been subjected to investigation. we have recorded their statements and documented the interrogations. We will place the details before you at the appropriate time,” he said.
Some of them have reportedly become untraceable after the notice was issued, but efforts are underway to locate and question them, Kharge said, without revealing their identity.
(PTI News)
