'I am not rebel but loyal', says Karnataka minister K S Eshwarappa
Mysuru, Apr 2: Faced with allegations of revolting against Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa and the BJP, state minister K S Eshwarappa on Friday asserted that he was never a rebel but loyal to the party.
Eshwarappa, also a former state BJP president, had come under attack for complaining to Governor Vajubhai Vala about Yediyurappa's alleged interference in the affairs of his department.
"I am not rebel but loyal.I have always been loyal from the beginning and will never rebel against my party," Eshwarappa told a press conference here.
He, however, insisted that his outrage was only to seek justice.
Clarifying his position, Eshwarappa said Rs 1,299 crore pertaining to his department was sanctioned, including Rs 65 crore to the Bengaluru Urban District Panchayat, without his knowledge.
"Without my knowledge Rs 65 crore was sanctioned for the Bengaluru Urban district Panchayat.Further, Rs 774 crore was released in the first instalment and Rs 460 crore in the second instalment. So altogether Rs 1,299 crore was released, which violates the Business Transaction Rules," the minister alleged.
Stating that he wrote to party leaders including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Chief Minister against the violation, Eshwarappa stopped the release of grants.
However, the Chief Minister wrote to the Principal Secretary directing him to release the funds "and later inform the minister," Eshwarappa alleged.
Accordingly, the Principal Secretary followed the order only to cancel it later after Eshwarappa told him that this violated the business transaction rules.
The minister clarified there was nothing personal with Yediyurappa and added that he had to flag the issue to prevent setting up a new precedent for other chief ministers to bypass the ministers concerned and release grants.
To a question, Eshwarappa said the Chief Minister seems to have been misled by a set of people who had in the past misguided him to rebel against the BJP and form the Karnataka Janata Party.
Eshwarappa yesterday drew flak from the BJP and some ministers who said his act of complaining to the governor against the chief minister was 'not right'.
BJP national general secretary in-charge of Karnataka Arun Singh has said Eshwarappa should not have written such a letter, being a senior leader and a minister.
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Senior Congress MLA, former Minister Shamanuru Shivashankarappa passes away
Bengaluru (PTI): Veteran Congress leader Shamanuru Shivashankarappa passed away at a private hospital here on Sunday due to age-related ailments, official sources said.
He was 95 and represented the Davanagere South Assembly constituency. He had been undergoing treatment at the hospital for some time.
Shivashankarappa is survived by three sons, including S S Mallikarjun, Karnataka Minister for Mines and Geology and Horticulture, and four daughters.
His daughter-in-law, Prabha Mallikarjun, is the Member of Parliament from Davanagere.
A former minister, Shivashankarappa, served as treasurer of the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) for several decades and was the president of the All India Veerashaiva Mahasabha, the apex body of the influential Veerashaiva-Lingayat community.
He was also a noted educationist who established several educational institutions and was an industrialist.
