BENGALURU:
Basavaraj Bommai, a prominent BJP leader, has called for an investigation by the ED and CBI into the illegal money that was discovered during Income Tax department searches. Bommai accused the Congress government and certain contractors of colluding to exploit the state, claiming that his own government had been accused of taking a 40% commission from contractors. He went on to label the contractors association as the Congress government’s commission collection center.
According to sources, IT officials found a significant amount of money hidden in various properties linked to a contractor based in the city. Bommai used this seizure as evidence of corruption within the government, alleging that corruption has permeated all aspects of governance, including the transfer of officials. He further claimed that the Congress government has been looting Karnataka to serve as an ATM for the Congress party’s election campaigns in five states.
Bommai asserted that this is the most corrupt government that Karnataka has ever witnessed, with corruption being rampant from the village level to the Vidhana Soudha. Regarding the cash seizure, he emphasized that it is unprecedented for such a large sum of money to be recovered from a contractor’s residence immediately after the release of pending bill payments. Bommai suggested that this proves the government received a 10% commission for clearing bills and speculated that more commission money would be uncovered if further raids were conducted on other contractors.
During a press conference, Bommai accused the Contractors Association of making baseless allegations against the previous BJP government and claimed that the same association is now acting as the government’s commission collection center.
There is a functioning contractors lobby that has been accused of engaging in corrupt practices alongside the government. The recent recovery of money should be thoroughly investigated by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) under the Money Laundering Act and by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) under the Prevention of Corruption Act. If the chief minister is not involved, he should refer the case to the Lokayukta or the Justice Nagmohan Das commission, which was established by Siddaramaiah himself to investigate the allegation that the previous BJP government received a 40 percent commission from contractors.
Furthermore, the state Congress leaders have been criticized for behaving like an ATM in preparation for the upcoming assembly polls in five states. They have no moral authority to speak about corruption. State Contractors Association President Kempanna has met with CM Siddaramaiah to raise concerns about the selective payment of dues for completed projects. This alone serves as evidence that bills for contractors who have paid commissions have been prioritized and released, according to Bommai’s claims.
