BJP MP Surya heckled by people at campaign in Bengaluru, leaves event midway
Bengaluru: BJP MP Tejasvi Surya was forced to leave an election campaign event at Basavanagudi in the city on Sunday, after investors who lost huge amounts of money due to a multi-crore scam involving the cooperative bank, Guru Raghavendra Sahakara Bank Limited, heckled Surya, demanding answers to their queries in the matter.
The investors who attended the event at Laxmanrao Imandar auditorium of Basavanagudi on Sunday forced Surya and BJP MLA from Basavanagudi LA Ravi Subramanya to clarify why the bank was delaying in compensating them for the losses that the investors had suffered due to the scam. The BJP leaders tried to pacify the bank investors, but the responses to the questions failed to satisfy the investors.
Video clips of the incident have gone viral on social media, and show the security leading the MP out of the hall. The MP, however, is also seen arguing with some of the angry investors while walking away.
The bank management had allegedly misappropriated around Rs 2,500 crore, in the said scam. The matter came to light in 2020, when the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) imposed withdrawal restrictions on the cooperative bank. More than 45,000 depositors had invested in the bank, and most of them received the Rs 5 lakh insurance amount from the Deposit Insurance and Credit Guarantee Corporation.
Over 15,000 depositors, whose deposit amounts exceed a total of Rs 6 lakh, have not been fully compensated. The Enforcement Directorate (ED), which probed the matter, attached the bank’s properties worth Rs 159 crore. The bank management has been accused of siphoning huge amounts of money, hand-in-glove with other people in the act.
The Karnataka government had also ordered in December 2023 an investigation of the scam by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
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Integrity of electoral process severely compromised, Cong to soon launch movement: CWC
New Delhi (PTI): The Congress Working Committee met here on Friday and adopted a resolution alleging the integrity of the entire electoral process was being severely compromised against which the party would soon launch a movement.
In the resolution of the top body of the Congress, the party said free and fair elections is a Constitutional mandate that was being called into "serious question by the partisan functioning of the Election Commission".
The CWC, which met amid the ongoing Winter Session of Parliament, said the session has been a washout so far because of the Narendra Modi government's "stubborn refusal" to have an immediate discussion on three pressing national issues -- "the recent revelations regarding corruption by a business group, and the violence in Manipur and Uttar Pradesh's Sambhal".
Asked why the Congress Working Committee (CWC) resolution does not name the business group, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said, "The answer is the Adani group".
"The CWC believes the integrity of the entire electoral process is being severely compromised. Free and fair elections is a Constitutional mandate that is being called into serious question by the partisan functioning of the Election Commission.
"Increasing sections of society are becoming frustrated and deeply apprehensive. The Congress will take these up these public concerns as a national movement," the resolution stated.
Addressing a joint press conference along with Ramesh and Congress spokesperson Pawan Khera, party general secretary, organisation, K C Venugopal said the party discussed the political situation in the country for four-and-half hours and adopted the resolution.
He said the CWC has decided to constitute internal committees to look into electoral performance and organisational matters.
About the Assembly polls results in Maharashtra, Venugopal said the electoral outcome in the state was "beyond normal understanding and it appears to be a clear case of targeted manipulation".
