Bengaluru: "As the NDA government, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has made the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) dysfunctional; the Congress party will knock the doors of the Supreme Court and initiate a legal battle," stated K.C. Venugopal, general secretary and state supremo of Congress.
He was addressing a press conference when the Congress activists picketed the CBI Office located at Ganganagar near Hebbal here on Friday.
"The Center and Prime Minister Narendra Modi transferred the CBI director overnight to cover-up the Rafale deal scam. This shows that they have accepted the Rafale deal scandal," he said.
He further said "the central government should immediately reinstate CBI chief Alok Verma to his post. The central government should drop this attempt of covering up the scandal."
Police blockade:
In order to not to allow the Congress workers inside the CBI office premises, the police had beefed up the security. As a result, Congress leaders and activists failed to enter into the CBI office.
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Bengaluru: Justice John Michael D’Cunha’s committee has uncovered significant irregularities in the procurement of medical supplies during the Covid-19 pandemic, revealing that more than 16 lakh RT-PCR test kits purchased by Karnataka in 2022 under the BJP-led government were either expired or close to their expiry dates.
After irregularities in PPE kit purchases, ventilators have also come under the scanner, with the report highlighting discrepancies amounting to Rs 173.26 crore in purchases made by the Medical Education Department.
The commission has also found that the Karnataka State Medical Supplies Corporation Ltd. (KSMSCL) that cancelled a supply order for one lakh Rapid Antigen (RAT) kits placed with a Singapore-based company in March 2020 — for delay in supplying — has not recovered the Rs 6.99 crore paid to the company towards the order, as reported by The Hindu on Thursday.
According to the 279-page report on procurements made by the KSMSCL that is compiled in part IV of the report, a payment of Rs 148.84 crore was made by KSMSCL to various suppliers and firms towards procurement of RT-PCR kits from 2020 to 2022.
The Commission’s report, as cited by the publication, stated that there were records indicating procurement of RT-PCR kits, RNA extraction kits and Viral transport media (VTM) of a total value of Rs 106.25 crore during the pandemic in Karnataka. However, according to the report, this procurement was made without administrative approval.
“Since the KSMSCL has failed to discharge its obligation and responsibility, the loss caused to the State exchequer to this extent is required to be replenished by the erring officers and/or officials of the KSMSCL as well as the officers and/or officials of the consignee designated laboratories who received the consignment,” the report said, pegging the losses due to expired kits supplied by companies at Rs 3.11 crore.
In response to the report’s findings, state Health Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao criticised the saffron party for profiting from the pandemic. He promised accountability for the irregularities involving PPE kits and ventilators, stating that those responsible would face punishment.