Ruckus in House on Day 1 over Valmiki case
Opposition Leader R Ashoka condemned the Karnataka government for a ₹187 crore scam in Valmiki Corporation, leading to the resignation of the scheduled tribes welfare minister.
On the first day of the Karnataka assembly, Leader of Opposition R Ashoka called the purported case within the Karnataka Maharshi Valmiki Scheduled Tribe Development Corporation as “100% khatakhat loot” and said that it shows the government’s ‘anti-Dalit’ stance despite claims of championing Dalit causes.
The multi-crore case in Valmiki Corporation came to light with one of the corporation employee’s died by suicide and left a suicide note that revealed unauthorised transfers totalling ₹187 crore from the corporation’s accounts, with substantial sums diverted to entities including IT firms and a cooperative bank in Hyderabad.
These revelations resulted in the resignation of scheduled tribes welfare minister B Nagendra, now in the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) custody pending investigations by multiple agencies including the SIT, CBI, and ED.
On Monday, Ashoka condemned the government at the assembly and said the incident shows the government’s ‘anti-Dalit’ stance despite claims of championing Dalit causes. “The person who died (Chandrashekar) was a Dalit. The ones who looted are Dalit. This government claims to be the champion of Dalits. How was ₹187 crore transferred takatak?” he said
He accused the Congress government of an unprecedented scam involving ₹187 crore meant for ST. He labelled the alleged embezzlement as a “100% khatakhat loot”. “There used to be scams of 2%, 3% and 10% but the Valmiki Corporation scam beats all. This is the 100% scam,” he said during the adjournment motion in the House on the irregularity.
As Ashoka argued that all ₹187 crore from the corporation was taken out, chief minister Siddaramaiah intervened and said, “It’s the ED remand application and not Nagendra’s confession. Also, Ashoka is saying ₹187 crore was looted. No, the amount is ₹89.62 crore.”
The BJP’s allegations further implicated the government in orchestrating Chandrasekharan’s death during a trip to Goa, purportedly under the guise of official duty, where he was allegedly mistreated to facilitate illegal financial transactions (QUOTE).
During the debate, the Leader of Opposition recalled deputy chief minister D K Shivakumar’s statement that former minister B Nagendra is not guilty of embezzlement at the Valmiki ST Development Corporation. “Shivakumar has said Nagendra will come out clean and that he’s not guilty. This was him sending out a message to the police. That’s what I feel,” he said.
In response, Shivakumar said: “Even today, I’m on record... he (Nagendra) hasn’t done anything wrong. I asked him about the case. I even asked him to confess if there was something wrong. He resigned on his own. Let the inquiry finish.”
The ongoing session of the legislature is expected to witness fervent debates and potentially the passage of crucial bills, including the Greater Bengaluru Governance Bill 2024, amid heightened scrutiny of governmental integrity and accountability.
Basanagouda Daddal, chairperson of the scam-hit Karnataka Maharshi Valmiki Scheduled Tribes Development Corporation, reappeared at the Vidhana Soudha in Bengaluru on Monday after being inaccessible for several days. Daddal, also the Raichur Rural Congress MLA, arrived at the Vidhana Soudha to participate in the assembly session scheduled from Monday until July 26. Addressing reporters, he clarified that he had not been missing but was visited his village.
Meanwhile, Janata Dal (Secular) or JD(S) MLA CB Suresh Babu has been appointed party’s leader in the Karnataka assembly, speaker U T Khader said on Monday. The position fell vacant following JD(S) leader H D Kumaraswamy’s election to the Lok Sabha.
“JD(S) state president H D Kumaraswamy on July 14 has given a letter stating that Chikkanayakanahalli MLA C B Suresh Babu has been appointed as the JD(S) party leader (in the assembly) and the same has to be recognised. Accordingly, Suresh Babu has been recognised as the JD(S) party leader,” Khader told the House.