CM denies charge of "vendetta politics" behind panel to speed up probe into scams during BJP rule
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Wednesday rejected allegations of "vendetta politics" behind the constitution of a committee of Ministers formed to review and coordinate regarding the action to be taken in connection with probe by government and investigating agencies into various scams that have taken place during the previous BJP government.
He said the panel has been formed to accelerate the probe into such cases, and the government will take action against those who have committed wrong.
"While replying to debate (in the Assembly) I had referred to more than 21 scams during the previous government (of BJP); to speed up the probe into all of them, and to advise to the government and the Cabinet on what is to be done in this regard, the Cabinet sub committee has been formed," Siddaramaiah told reporters here.
On inquiry commissions already being formed to probe some cases, he said: "It has not been formed for all cases. Inquiry commissions have been formed for scams or cases such as Sub Inspector recruitment, 40 per cent commission, COVID-19, Bitcoin."
He noted that in some cases such as (irregularities in) COVID-19 (management), a preliminary report has been given, and a committee of officials has been formed to review and submit recommendations on what action to be taken.
Siddaramaiah said the Cabinet sub committee will review the progress of investigations and to recommend to the government on necessary action to be taken.
"I have asked the committee to submit the report within two months," he added.
On the BJP dubbing the move as "vendetta politics," Siddaramaiah said, "what politics have they done with me? (in connection with Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) site allotment scam)."
"We don't indulge in vendetta politics, did we do it when I was Chief Minister earlier? Even now we have not done, but we will take action against those who have committed wrong...the committee has been formed to accelerate the probe into (such) cases," he said,
Meanwhile, Home Minister G Parameshwara said the committee is likely to meet this week.
"Every case that is pending at various stages... some of them that have been decided and some yet to be decided...to review all of them and to submit a report a Cabinet subcommittee has been formed. Probably this week itself I will call a meeting of the committee," Parameshwara who heads the committee told reporters.
He said such cases have been identified and their status report will be submitted to the Cabinet.
"We will not go on an individual basis, the number of cases that are pending, we will review. Cases should not catch the dust without action, so we will review them. We were doing it departmentally earlier, now it has been decided at the Cabinet level, so the committee has been formed, it is also to speed up the process," he added.
Parameshwara on Tuesday said during the BJP rule 20-25 scams have taken place, and all of them will be reviewed.
Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister H K Patil, Revenue Minister Krishna Byre Gowda, Rural Development Minister Priyank Kharge and Labour Minister Santosh Lad are the members of the committee.
On the BJP's charge of "vendetta politics," the Home Minister said: "Let them say whatever they want, we will have to do our duty."
"As the ruling party we will have more responsibility. They (opposition) have the responsibility to criticise, advise and correct the government if it is going in the wrong direction. As the party in government we have our own responsibility and we are answerable to the people," he added.
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Manoj Kumar Verma made new commissioner of Kolkata Police, Vineet Goyal removed
Kolkata, Sep 17: In the autumn of 2010, when political winds were shifting in West Bengal, opposition leader Mamata Banerjee, then Railway Minister, denounced Paschim Medinipur police chief Manoj Verma and labelled him as a "CPI(M) agent" due to his crackdown on opposition activities, vowing to make him apologise once in power.
Fast forward 14 years to 2024, Banerjee, now a three-term West Bengal Chief Minister, has appointed the same IPS officer as the commissioner of Kolkata Police, which is under fire for its alleged mishandling of the high-profile R G Kar hospital rape-murder case.
Verma earned his credentials as a strong police officer during one of Bengal's most perilous times - the Maoist insurgency that plagued the district and the entire Junglemahal region in the late 2000s.
When he was appointed the SP in 2008, Maoists had entrenched themselves in large parts of the region, establishing a near-parallel authority.
Verma's approach combined toughness with community engagement, and while his operational style often faced criticism, especially from political opponents, it effectively led to the systematic dismantling of the Maoist stronghold in the district.
By 2010, as the Maoist movement faltered, Verma found himself at the centre of both praise and controversy. He defended the controversial methods of the security forces, including a particularly brutal encounter at Salboni where dead Maoists were tied to bamboo sticks for transportation.
His critics, particularly from the Trinamool Congress (TMC), accused him of being a pawn of the then-Left Front government, calling him a "CPI(M) agent".
Calling him a "CPI(M) agent" for his crackdown on Maoist insurgents that allegedly reinforced the Left government's control over rural Bengal, Banerjee, in a rally in October 2010, vowed to "make him apologise" once her party comes to power.
After coming to power in 2011, the TMC government put Verma on "compulsory waiting," but it wasn't long before it realised his indispensability.
When peace talks between the state and Maoists collapsed, Verma was brought back to head the counter-insurgency force.
He played a key role in ending the ultra-left movement in the region, which culminated with the encounter of top Maoist leader Kishenji in a police encounter in November 2011.
Verma's ability to handle crises isn't limited to the plains. In 2017, as violent pro-statehood agitations swept through Darjeeling, he was appointed Inspector General (IG) of the region.
The hills had erupted into chaos with the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) leading the charge for a separate state of Gorkhaland which continued for 104 days.
Verma's tenure in the region was characterised by firm action, with several GJM leaders, including its supremo Bimal Gurung, forced to flee.
Verma's success in Darjeeling earned him further accolades, including the prestigious Police Medal for Meritorious Service in 2017.
Verma's next big challenge came in Barrackpore, where political violence had escalated in the wake of BJP's rising influence post-2019 Lok Sabha elections.
Gang wars, shootouts, and political killings became the order of the day, as the TMC and BJP clashed for dominance.
Appointed as the commissioner of Barrackpore Police Commissionerate, he again deployed his "iron-fist" approach against criminals.
Under Verma's leadership, political violence was curbed, but it came at a cost, as the BJP, especially then-local MP Arjun Singh, accused him of acting in favour of the ruling TMC.
Earlier this year just ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, he was appointed ADG (Law and Order) of West Bengal Police.
Now, as he takes charge of the 168-year-old Kolkata Police, he inherits a force under immense public and political pressure following allegations of mishandling the R G Kar rape-murder case, and all eyes are on how this seasoned officer will navigate these challenges.
An officer of Kolkata Police, Abhijit Mondal, the officer-in-charge of Tala police station, has been arrested by the CBI for allegedly tampering with evidence in the woman medic's rape-murder case.
Whether Verma's past successes will bring smoother times for Kolkata Police remain uncertain, but in this moment of crisis, Mamata Banerjee, once his fiercest critic, has come full circle by entrusting him to lead the city's law enforcement through yet another storm.
Verma has repeatedly proven his ability to rise to the occasion, whether by dismantling Maoist insurgencies in Paschim Medinipur, restoring peace in the volatile Darjeeling hills, or controlling political violence in Barrackpore, but his toughest challenge may now lie ahead in managing the complexities of the law and order situation in Kolkata, where intersections of politics, policing, and public perception create a unique test few other cities present.
