Cong owes answers for the scams during its tenure: Karnataka CM

Bengaluru: The scams of the previous Congress government are being investigated by the Lokayukta and they owe an explanation for those charges.

The Congress must reply to the questions regarding the tender scams during their period, said Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai.

Replying to the corruption charges levelled against the state government by Leader of the Opposition in the State Legislative Assembly, Siddaramaiah and KPCC chief D.K. Shivakumar at a press conference here on Wednesday, he said, “The Congress leaders talk by remembering about the omissions and commissions of their period.

“The Congress leaders are threatening them with inquiry once they come back to power. That means they are coming to power to loot. They themselves have disclosed their agenda. The 40 per cent commission charges are baseless and they have failed to produce evidence before the court. Enquiry is guaranteed if they file the case with all the specifications. Without doing it, firing in the air will not be helpful,” he said.

“Making any statement without giving any evidence is of no use. The Congress ruled for five years and they also had called tenders. After the BJP came to power a committee headed by a judge went through all those tenders and everything is now being scrutinized. Now the tender process is very transparent and any one can give a complaint,” CM Bommai said.

He said when Shivakumar was the Water Resources Minister the tender inspection committee was removed as well as TAC. The two-level inspection system was shelved by the corporation. The Congress had opened the avenues for corruption, but the BJP government had re-established the inspection system. So they have no moral rights to talk about corruption.

Earlier in the day, Shivakumar claimed the chief minister’s office was involved in collecting commissions while clearing old bills and approving new projects.

The Congress also accused the state government of hurriedly floating tenders at the fag end of its tenure at inflated rates to collect funds for the BJP’s Assembly election campaign.