Former Chief Secy Ratna Prabha denies joining BJP

Bengaluru: Former state chief secretary and retired IAS officer Ratna Prabha has denied reports of her having joined the BJP in the state.

Media reports, published both in Kannada and English had hinted that the BJP would be fielding the retired IAS officer against veteran Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections considering her popularity in the Hyderabad Karnataka region.

The former IAS officer has, however, while speaking to TNM, said that the reports were baseless and that someone with a personal vendetta could have planted the news, for the CM was planning to give her an assignment.

“I have not joined the BJP, I am not even in Bengaluru. This is all fake news. This has made my life miserable and I am getting calls all throughout the morning. Nobody has even approached me,” the ex-IAS officer was quoted speaking to TNM.

A 1981 IAS batch officer Ratna Prabha was the third woman Chief Secretary in the state and had superannuated from the post of chief secretary in June’ 2018.