Karnataka Cong MLA B Nagendra 'mastermind' of Valmiki scam: ED
New Delhi, Oct 9: Karnataka Congress MLA B Nagendra is the "mastermind" behind the multi-crore Valmiki Corporation alleged scam and the funds diverted from this state government entity were also used for a candidate who contested the Lok Sabha polls earlier this year, the ED claimed Wednesday.
The federal agency said it has filed a prosecution complaint or charge sheet in this case sometime ago before a special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court in Bengaluru. The court has taken cognisance of the charge sheet, it said.
"B Nagendra, MLA and former Minister for Scheduled Tribal Affairs, has been named as the primary accused and mastermind behind the scam, allegedly orchestrating it with the help of 24 others, including key associates like Satyanarayana Varma, Etakari Satyanarayana, J.G. Padmanabha, Nageshwar Rao, Nekkenti Nagaraj, and Vijay Kumar Gowda," the Enforcement Directorate said in a statement.
Nagendra was arrested by the ED in this case.
ALSO READ: Karnataka Cong MLA Vinay Kulkarni booked for rape, kidnapping and criminal intimidation
The agency claimed its probe found that "under the influence of B Nagendra, the account of the Corporation (Karnataka Maharshi Valmiki ST Development Corporation) was moved to the MG Road Branch without any proper authorisation, where Rs 187 crore, including Rs. 43.33 crore from the state treasury under the Ganga Kalyana Scheme, were deposited without following proper procedures and in violation of government guidelines.
"These funds were subsequently siphoned off through multiple shell accounts and converted into cash and bullion," the ED alleged.
An amount of Rs 20.19 crore of the "diverted" funds were used to support a candidate contesting the 2024 Lok Sabha election from the Bellary constituency, as well as for the personal expenses of B Nagendra, it added.
The ED said "evidence" of these expenditures was found by it during search operations conducted by it and "corroborated" by financial analysis and statements
"Details of these election expenses were retrieved from the mobile phone of Vijay Kumar Gowda, who handled the cash on Nagendra's instructions," it claimed.
The money laundering case stems from an FIR of the Karnataka Police and the CBI where it was alleged that around Rs 89.62 crore were diverted from the accounts of the Corporation's (Valmiki) accounts into "fake accounts" across Andhra Pradesh and Telangana and later laundered through shell entities.
The alleged irregularities came to fore after accounts superintendent of the Corporation, Chandrasekharan P was found dead on May 21. He wrote a suicide note alleging illegal transfer of money from the Corporation to various bank accounts.
In the suicide note, Chandrasekharan alleged that there was an unauthorised transfer of Rs 187 crore belonging to the state-run Corporation from its bank account.
Additionally, Rs 88.62 crore was illegally deposited into various accounts of some Information Technology (IT) companies and a Hyderabad-based cooperative bank.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Bihar CM Nitish Kumar takes oath as Rajya Sabha member
New Delhi (PTI): Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Friday took oath as a member of Rajya Sabha, marking the end of his two-decade rule in the eastern state and paving the way for a new chief minister.
The oath was administered by Rajya Sabha Chairman C P Radhakrishnan in his chamber at a brief ceremony. The Chairman later welcomed him as a member of the Upper House and also on his return in Parliament.
Kumar took the oath in Hindi in the presence of Union Minister J P Nadda, who is also leader of the house, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Panchayati Raj Minister Rajiv Ranjan Singh, Minister of State for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Ram Nath Thakur and Minister of State for Law and Justice Arjun Ram Meghwal.
Bihar deputy chief minister Samrat Chaudhary was also present at the oath-taking.
JDU leader and party's working president Sanjay Kumar Jha, Congress chief whip in Rajya Sabha Jairam Ramesh, besides BJP MP and former union minister Rajiv Pratap Rudy and BJP chief whip in Lok Sabha Sanjay Jaiswal, were among those present during the oath-taking.
"Vice President of India and Chairman, Rajya Sabha, Shri C. P. Radhakrishnan, administered the oath to Shri Nitish Kumar as an elected Member of Rajya Sabha, from Bihar, at Parliament House today," the Vice President's office said on X, while sharing pictures of the oath-taking.
After the oath-taking, Kumar came out of the new Parliament building and spoke about the time he was a member of the Lok Sabha and sat in the old Parliament building.
As Kumar assumes the Rajya Sabha role, it marks the end of his long two-decade rule in Bihar. Kumar will soon resign as chief minister and the NDA is likely to elect a new chief minister of Bihar on April 14.
He has already resigned as a member of the State Legislative Council on March 30 after he was elected to Rajya Sabha.
The JD(U) supremo was elected to the Upper House of Parliament on March 16, and he had to quit as an MLC in the 14-day period after his election.
