The B.S. Yediyurappa-led BJP government which is already battling on multiple fronts, thanks to the pandemic, has come under severe attack from the state Congress which has made serious allegations against the saffron party in misappropriation of funds in purchase of medical equipment and Covid-related measures.
Newly appointed KPCC president D.K. Shivkumar and leader of Opposition Siddaramaiah held meeting with senior Congress leaders and former ministers to draw up strategy and reach out to nook and corner of the state drumming alleged corruption and kickback that has happened “in the last three months”.
Addressing the media, Shivkumar said there has been massive corruption in purchasing ventilators, PPE kits, masks, hand-sanitisers and thermal readers apart from procurement of beds for Covid care centres. “We have collected documents related to purchases made without any transparency under the provisions of disaster management act. Prima facie it seems certain cabinet ministers have amassed crores of rupees even as people were dying on the road without proper medical care.
Our CLP leader Siddaramaiah has proposed Lekka Kodi (give account) campaign and we will share all the details on this abhiyaan on Wednesday. Some ventilators and medical aides have been purchased at three-times the market value. We will not sit quite till all questions are answered,” he said on Monday.
Meanwhile speaking to The Daily Guardian, former CM Siddaramaiah said: “Over Rs 2,000 has been spent in the last three months by the BBMP, health department, social welfare department and medical education ministry. On one hand people of this state have been given inadequate medical care and on the other hand there is no stopping this corrupt government from purchasing equipment. Be it from distributing food kits to medical aid the BJP leaders are branding their names and distributing them. We have demanded the chief minister to release a whitepaper. There should be thorough investigation.”
Deputy CM Ashwathnarayan and Health Minister B. Sriramulu held a press conference on Monday to issue point-by-point rebuttal on charges made by the Opposition, stating that the charges of Rs 2,200 crore irregularities raised by Opposition leader Siddaramaiah are far from the truth.
According to them, the government so far has spent just Rs 290.60 crore; besides this, the Medical Education department has spent Rs 33 crore. The former CM has made these charges against the government out of frustration of losing the power, the duo alleged.
The two, flanked by Additional Chief Secretary Jawaid Akthar and head of Karnataka State Drug Logistics Warehousing Society N. Manjushree, said the difference in prices quoted by different companies was due to different specifications of ventilators.
