New Delhi: The BJP on Tuesday alleged a scam in the land allotment to a trust run by the family of Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge in Karnataka. The BJP demanded a CBI probe into the matter. Addressing a press conference at the BJP headquarters, party's national spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia demanded the resignation of Mallikarjun Kharge from the post of Congress president and his son Priyank Kharge from the ministerial post. Kharge's son is a minister in the Karnataka government. He also demanded the resignation of Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah.
Bhatia said, “There is continuity in Congress' corruption. We will do corruption wherever we go, this is the new slogan of Congress. It would not be wrong to say that Congress has become synonymous with corruption.” He said, “We have seen MUDS (Mysore Urban Development Authority) scam and Valmiki Development Corporation scam happening under the nose of Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah. Now a case of allotment of five acres of land to a trust run by Mallikarjun Kharge and his family has come to light in Karnataka.”
'Land was given to Kharge family by ignoring the rules'
The BJP spokesperson said that the plot was allotted to the trust run by the Kharge family by ignoring the rules. He claimed that this trust includes Mallikarjun Kharge, his wife, his son-in-law Radhakrishna and sons Priyank Kharge and Rahul Kharge. Bhatia claimed, 'According to the information available with us, many companies and organizations had applied for the plot, but by ignoring the rules, it was allotted to the trust run by the Kharge family.'
'Kharge should resign from the post of Congress President'
The BJP spokesperson demanded that Mallikarjun Kharge should immediately resign as Congress president and his son Priyank Kharge as minister of state. “There should be an impartial probe by the CBI in the matter to find out the truth,” he said. BJP leader and Rajya Sabha member Lahar Singh Siroya on Sunday raised questions over the alleged allotment of Karnataka Industrial Area Development Board (KIADB) land to a trust run by Kharge's family and asked when did he become an aerospace entrepreneur to be eligible to get the land. He also questioned whether the case involved abuse of power, nepotism and conflict of interest.
What is the matter?
Karnataka minister MB Patil on Monday said the educational trust run by Rahul Kharge, son of Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, was allotted a civic amenity (CA) plot at the Aerospace Park at a price determined in accordance with rules. In a statement, Patil rejected the allegations levelled by Siroya and said no rules were violated in the process.
