India, Aug. 12 -- Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar on Monday hit out at media reports claiming that the silver Ganesha idol he gifted to Prime Minister Narendra Modi was originally purchased by BJP MLA M Krishnappa.

In a strongly worded post on X (formerly Twitter), Shivakumar clarified that the idol was personally bought by him and no government or departmental funds were used. "I haven't come to the sorry state of giving someone else's gift to another person," he wrote.

"The silver Ganesha idol presented to Prime Minister Modi at the inauguration of the Yellow Line Metro in Bengaluru was my own. It was bought with my own money, brought from my home, and tested by the SPG through my office staff before being handed over," ...