Bengaluru: Days after former Union Minister C.M. Ibrahim claimed in Mysuru that Chief Minister Siddaramaiah had ‘purchased votes’ in Badami Constituency of Bagalkot district from where he had successfully contested  in the 2018 Assembly polls, the Karnataka BJP on Monday said, it would approach the State Election Commission (SEC) over allegations of vote-buying by Siddaramaiah.

The BJP’s response came in the Vidhana Soudha when State Party Chief and MLA B.Y. Vijayendra sought a  reply from the Government  to questions about former senior Congress leader C.M. Ibrahim’s statement and an alleged audio clip of  Congress MLA from Arasikere, K.M. Shivalinge Gowda discussing “vote purchases”.

Vijayendra said, “There are two issues — one is about Arasikere Congress MLA Shivalinge Gowda’s statement and the other on C.M. Ibrahim, a close associate of Siddaramaiah. Ibrahim had recently  claimed  that votes were bought in the Assembly election in which Siddaramaiah won by a narrow margin.”

Vijayendra added, “CM Siddaramaiah won that crucial election by just over 1,500 votes. The BJP will pursue this matter seriously. We may approach the State Election Commission by tomorrow or the day after and demand a thorough investigation.”

BJP Rajya Sabha Member Lahar Singh Siroya had recently filed a complaint with the Election Commission of India about Ibrahim’s claim that 3,000 votes were bought for Siddaramaiah in the 2018 Assembly polls.

Lahar Singh, in his complaint, also called for a probe into an audio clip allegedly featuring Shivalinge Gowda, claiming that money was distributed in Hassan Constituency during the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

Another purported audio clip captures Gowda discussing with a Congress Rajya Sabha MP how much money should be distributed per voter in Hassan to ensure the party candidate’s victory.

With BJP now set to move the SEC, tensions over vote-buying charges may escalate between ruling Congress and the BJP.