Valmiki money transfer scam: BJP to block Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah’s house, demand resignation

Karnataka BJP leaders will lay siege to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s residence in Bengaluru on July 3, demanding his resignation in connection with an alleged illegal money transfer scam involving a state-run corporation, party’s state president B Y Vijayendra said on Saturday.

BJP on Friday held a state-wide protest against the Congress government on the issue and held demonstrations in front of the Deputy Commissioner’s office in almost all districts.

The illegal money transfer issue, involving the corporation, came to light after its accounts superintendent, Chandrashekhar P, died by suicide on May 26, leaving behind a death note.

The note claimed unauthorised transfer of ₹187 crore belonging to the corporation from its bank account, and from that, ₹88.62 crore was illegally moved to various accounts allegedly belonging to “well-known” IT companies and a Hyderabad-based cooperative bank, among others.

Chandrashekhar has named the corporation’s now-suspended managing director J G Padmanabh, accounts officer Parashuram G Durugannavar, and Union Bank of India chief manager Suchismita Rawal in the note, while also stating that the “Minister” had issued oral orders for transferring the funds.

Following allegations against him in connection with the scam, Scheduled Tribes Welfare Minister B Nagendra tendered his resignation on June 6.

“The scam and corruption happened at the Valmiki Development Corporation. The BJP has been staging agitation continuously against it. As a result of our agitation, Nagendra, who was a minister, had to resign. There are several things mentioned in Chandrashekar’s suicide note, but the state government seems to still have not taken this case seriously,” Vijayendra said.

Speaking to reporters here, he said, BJP will continue its agitation against this huge scam in which the Congress government has looted the money that was to be spent for the welfare of the Valmiki and other ST communities.

Medical Education Minister Sharan Prakash Patil and Valmiki Corporation’s chairman Basanagouda Daddal will have to resign. Not only that, the chief minister has to resign, because the ₹187 crore scam would not have happened without coming to his notice, who holds the Finance portfolio, at the time when Lok Sabha polls were on, Vijayendra said.

“So on July 3, all our legislators will lay siege to the chief minister’s residence in Bengaluru. Never such a huge scam had happened in the state in the past. The money kept for the welfare of the ST community has been misused.

“There are discussions that the money was used for the Lok Sabha polls by creating a number of fake accounts,” he said, claiming that some people have received death threats in connection with the case.

The state government has constituted an SIT headed by Manish Kharbikar, Additional Director General of Police, Economic Offences, at the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), to conduct the probe.

Mumbai-headquartered Union Bank of India had also filed a complaint with the CBI in connection with embezzlement of money belonging to the corporation involving its MG Road branch, following which the premier investigation agency had initiated a probe.