Bengaluru, 18 Oct (H.S.): Senior Congress leader and party Karnataka state presidenet , B.K. Hariprasad has accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of using sting operations against political rivals, invoking the controversy involving former BJP general secretary Sanjay Joshi amid Karnataka’s continuing political war of words over covert recordings.

Hariprasad described Modi as the “father of sting operations” in India and alleged that an operation targeting Joshi had been used to derail his political career.

Recalling his organisational responsibilities in Gujarat, Hariprasad said he had handled Congress affairs when Joshi was overseeing the BJP’s organisation in the state. He alleged that Modi had engineered Joshi’s political marginalisation through the controversial recording.

The allegation represents Hariprasad’s account; the background material does not establish that Modi organised or commissioned the recording.

Joshi and Modi, both former Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh pracharaks, worked to strengthen the BJP’s organisation in Gujarat before developing a bitter political rivalry.

In December 2005, Joshi resigned as BJP general secretary after a CD purportedly depicting him in a compromising situation circulated among party leaders. He approached police, alleging blackmail and a conspiracy to malign him.

Subsequent reporting on the forensic findings was inconsistent, making an unqualified assertion that the recording was conclusively proved fabricated inappropriate.

Then BJP president Nitin Gadkari later brought Joshi back into organisational work, assigning him responsibilities for the Uttar Pradesh Assembly election campaign. His rehabilitation, however, renewed tensions within the party.

In May 2012, Joshi resigned from the BJP’s national executive ahead of its Mumbai meeting after Modi reportedly opposed his presence. Modi subsequently agreed to attend the gathering, bringing their longstanding rivalry into public focus.

Hariprasad’s remarks have brought that episode back into Karnataka’s political debate, with his accusation against Modi remaining an allegation rather than an established finding about responsibility for the 2005 recording or its circulation among BJP leaders.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Arun Lakshman