‘De-Jure Cum De-Facto Chief Minister B S Yeddiyurappa should Resign for Running a CORRUPT Government, and also for backing ‘Super CM ‘ son, Vijayendra’- Former MLC Ivan D’souza, and current spokesperson of the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee.
Mangaluru: Addressing the media persons during a press meet held at DK Congress Committee Hall,Mallikatta, Mangaluru former MLC and present Spokesperson of Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) Ivan D’souza said, “On the outset I extend my heartfelt gratitude to Rahul Gandhi, Sonia Gandhi and other top Congress leaders for having trust in me by appointing me as Spokesperson of KPCC”. Lashing out at Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa-led government over the handling of the coronavirus crisis, Ivan D’souza accused the Karnataka government of corruption in the purchase of ventilators.
“Tamil Nadu government buys a ventilator for Rs 4.78 lakh, and Karnataka Government buys it for Rs 18.20 lakh. Why? The Chief Minister should give an answer to us on this corruption by his government. The people of Karnataka are “dying because of the unavailability of ventilators”.BJP’s ministers are busy in corruption in all medical purchases, from Personal Protective Equipment (PPEs) to test kits and even beds. BJP government is using this health crisis as an opportunity to loot,” alleged D’souza.
“The government implemented the lockdown untimely which destroyed both the health of the people and also the economy as they did not take strict precautionary measures. Because they did not take strict measures the infections are increasing. In the entire state, all the government run hospitals lack beds, ventilators, PPE, no oxygen cylinders, sanitizers, face masks, etc- and the government is showing a huge spending list in fighting the virus. When asked to show us the expenditure files, the government got no guts to show us the exact details. This shows how corrupt this BJP government is, which is looting peoples’ money. When there were less than 10 covid-19 cases daily in March 2020 in DK, now the spike is between 300-400 daily, including 5-10 deaths. With all this corruption going on in the government , the Congress demands the resignation of the Chief Minister for his corruption in the BJP-led Karnataka government” added Ivan.
Ivan D’souza also alleged that the chief minister and his family is involved in corruption in housing projects and received Rs 24 crore of kickbacks in the project for construction of apartments by Bangalore Development Authority (BDA). The allegations of corruption refer to demands for bribes allegedly by CM Yediyurappa’s son, son-in-law and grandson in a flat construction project by city’s development agency BDA. “There are TV channels footage, WhatsApp chats that are evidence of bribery allegedly being sought from the contractor and of the bribe given in cash and through direct transfers in bank accounts. The TV channel which highlighted this on-going corruption was shut down by the government, which is not right. “
“Chief Minister Yediyurappa and his family have been caught taking a bribe in the alleged Rs 666-crore BDA construction project scam. We demand a time-bound probe by a sitting Supreme Court judge or by the Chief Justice of the Karnataka High Court. Chief Minister Yediyurappa must resign or should be sacked by the BJP to ensure fairness in the investigation. It should be also noted that CM’s son, B Y Vijayendra had demanded an additional Rs 17 crore from the contractor to issue an work order saying that previously paid amount has not reached him. Contractor transfers Rs 7.4 crore directly to the account of Sashidar Maradi. The balance amount was asked to be paid to son-in-law’s Madura Estate in Hubli… Later, this black money was routed through seven shell companies registered in different states and finally back,” added Ivan D’souza.
He further said “There have been allegations of Vijayendra playing a larger role in backroom decisions of the BJP-led state government. Narendra Modi had failed to introduce an efficient GST, but our Chief Minister has successfully introduced VST (Vijayendra Service Tax). In both the cases, people are the sufferers. We heard that a few BJP MLAs saying Vijayendra, who became a vice-president of the Karnataka BJP two months ago, has emerged as a key player in the government. Seems like there are two CMs in the state. Vijayendra is the de facto CM, Yediyurappa is the de jure CM? Recalling, 77-year-old Yediyurappa’s family has created problems for him earlier too. In 2011, he was forced to quit as CM, and subsequently jailed, over allegations of corruption involving Vijayendra and Raghavendra. All three were acquitted by a CBI court in 2016. One of the reasons why Yediyurappa fell out with the BJP leadership ahead of the 2018 Assembly polls was his push for a ticket for Vijayendra from Mysore’s Varuna constituency”.
“And now the Rs 7.4 crore being transferred through RTGS into a bank account proved that the government run by Yediyurappa was indulging in rampant corruption. Looks like there are two types of taxes – one in GST, other is VST (Vijayendra Service Tax). So, with all this corruption that is going on in the BJP-led Karnataka government, which was highlighted bravely on a Kannada TV Channel, there is ample proof, therefore Congress is urging CM Yeddiyurappa to resign immediately. With Vijayendra acting like a “Super Chief Minister” hardly any work is carried on without discussing with him. Too bad with all these corruption by Yeddiyurappa, and also his family, BJP has still not taken any action, even though there are documents and proof against chief minister Yediyurappa regarding corruption. It should be noted that when Congress was in power, we were ready for any investigation when demanded by the opposition. So, why BJP is keeping very quite. But we will not give up our fight and protests in every nook and corner of the state, until justice is served with the resignation of MC Yeddiyurappa” concluded KPCC spokesperson Ivan D’souza.
DK Congress Youth President Mithun Rai who also spoke condemned the action taken by the BJP government in shutting down the Kannada TV Channel based in Bengaluru. Congress leaders Ibrahin Kodijal, C M Mustafa and A C Jayaraj were present on the dais.
A classical case of the kettle calling the pot black. What did Ivan do when he was MLC? Let him show one small work that he has done to justify his post for 6 years. Ask honourable JR Lobo, he will tell you! Ivan should take vanavas from politics