‘Paid Rs 15 lakh to dist in-charge minister’: Davanagere officer-contractor conversation goes viral
Davangere: An alleged audio interaction between City Corporation Manager Venkatesh and contractor Krishna, who fell into the trap of the Lokayukta on accusations of demanding Rs 7 lakh to give the excise tender, has reportedly gone viral.
Contractor Krishna has accused the Corporation Manager Venkatesh was caught on audio stating that ‘a payment of Rs 15 lakh has even been made to the district in-charge minister (Urban Development Minister Byrathi Basavaraj)’, it is learned.
Krishna, along with Sri Rama Sene leaders, addressed a joint press conference on Monday.
“In 2021, I obtained the contract for excise collection. I had requested the municipal commissioner to extend the period of the contract due to apparent loss. The Commissioner then notified me to contact Corporation Manager Venkatesh in this regard. To renew the contract, Venkatesh put forth a demand of Rs 7 lakh in bribes and received Rs 2 lakh in advance. On Sunday night, when he was receiving the additional Rs 3 lakh rupees, he fell into the Lokayukta’s trap”, Krishna revealed.
Demand to take action against municipal commissioner, minister:
Shri Rama Sene’s District President Manikanta has demanded action to be taken against the municipal commissioner for taking lakhs of rupees in bribe money to allocate the excise tender. “The High Court and the District Court have already registered cases concerning incidents of corruption that have occurred in the jurisdiction of the Municipal Corporation and the district”, he informed.
“Concerning the renewal of the excise contract in the jurisdiction of the Davanagere City Municipal Corporation, the Corporation’s Commissioner had put forth a demand of Rs 7 lakh for six months’ contract renewal. Upon discussion, it was agreed that, first, an advance amount of Rs 2 lakh was to be given, and the remaining Rs 5 lakh would be paid after signing the renewal order. In the background of this agreement, when the person went to pay the money on Sunday night, the Lokayukta conducted a raid and arrested Venkatesh”, Manikanta added.
“The Lokayukta conducted the raid at Venkatesh’s room near the Ram and Co circle in the city when he was receiving Rs 3 lakh on Sunday night. He has been taken into judicial custody. Since corruption is underway at all levels of the City Corporation, the Lokayukta officials must take necessary action against this”, he requested.
“Apart from this, the Corporation’s employee Venkatesh, during his conversation with Krishna, had stated that he had recently paid an amount of Rs 15 lakh to the Davanagere District In-charge Minister Byrathi Basavaraj. Therefore the Lokayukta must also investigate the minister”, he demanded.
Concerning the audio recording of the conversation between Venkatesh and Krishna, he urged the Lokayukta police to undertake a comprehensive investigation and take appropriate action against those found guilty.
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Bengaluru jail introduces biometric tracking system for prisoners
Bengaluru: In a bid to curb misconduct and illegal activities inside Parappana Agrahara Central Prison, prison authorities have introduced a new ‘Prisoners Tracking Movement System’ under which inmates will have to undergo biometric verification while entering every barrack.
According to jail officials, biometric systems have been installed across all major sections of the prison, including barracks, visitor rooms, hospital, canteen, kitchen, library, playground, handicraft units and bakery sections. Staff members have also been deployed at these locations.
Officials said inmates visiting the visitors’ room must now obtain a digital token after biometric verification. Details such as the prisoner’s name, identification number and entry time will be updated in the prison software system. This will help authorities maintain a complete digital record of inmates visiting and returning from meeting rooms.
Similar systems have also been introduced at entry points of the hospital, library and other barracks accessed for work-related purposes. Officials said the system will help identify prisoners involved in suspicious or illegal activities with other inmates and enable authorities to track how much time a prisoner spends at different locations inside the prison.
Authorities stated that AI-powered cameras were already being used inside the prison to monitor inmates as well as prison staff. Along with this, digital tracking of prisoner phone calls and a digital token system for visitor meetings have now been added to strengthen surveillance over inmate movement. Officials said the project has been implemented at a cost of around Rs 2.25 crore.
The prison department has also introduced a canteen usage tracking system to monitor prisoners’ spending patterns. Instead of direct cash payments, inmates can purchase bakery items and snacks using wallets or coupons issued within the prison system.
Officials said the digital system will record details including the buyer’s name, items purchased, quantity, date, time and remaining wallet balance. This will allow prison authorities to maintain complete expenditure records of inmates.
