Karnataka Minister BZ Zameer Ahmed Khan rejects EWS housing scheme graft charges, seeks probe
Bengaluru, Jun 24 (PTI): Karnataka Housing Minister B Z Zameer Ahmed Khan on Tuesday dismissed allegations of corruption in the allotment of houses under the Economically Weaker Section (EWS) scheme and called for a thorough probe into the matter.
The minister was responding to claims made by ruling Congress MLA from Aland, B R Patil, who alleged that bribes were being collected from poor families in exchange for houses.
"Is there any instance where money is being taken to allot houses? Let B R Patil tell me who demanded money. We will take action against those who accepted bribes — they won’t be spared," Khan told reporters.
He urged Patil to write to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and formally seek an inquiry into the alleged irregularities.
Clarifying his stance, Khan said he had already ordered a departmental probe.
"As the minister, I’ve directed senior officials to investigate whether such incidents have occurred. So far, no such instance has come to my notice," he said.
Refuting allegations that he personally benefited, Khan said, "I am not in such penury that I need to collect money from the poor. If I have taken money for allotting houses, I deserve to be cursed. Will my family or I gain anything by exploiting the poor? We will perish."
He added that only Panchayats are authorised to select beneficiaries, not MLAs.
"If Panchayat members have taken money, let them be exposed. I haven't come across any complaint of Panchayat officials collecting money from beneficiaries."
According to Khan, all MLAs cutting across party lines had submitted recommendations for house allotments, but the state lacked enough stock to meet every request.
"We’re allotting houses in phases. Patil had asked for around 2,000 houses, but we also have to reallocate homes that were cancelled earlier. We’ve given 950 houses to separate Panchayats."
Addressing Patil's complaint that none of the people he recommended were allotted houses while the Aland Panchayat president allegedly secured 950 homes for his people, Khan reiterated that he had no role in the selection.
The minister criticised the Centre for levying 12 per cent GST on the Rs 1.5 lakh grant provided under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY) for EWS families.
"I requested BJP leaders in Karnataka to get the GST removed on central housing funds, but nothing has happened," he said.
He explained that the total cost of a house under the scheme is Rs 7.5 lakh, with Rs 1.5 lakh each from the Centre and the state. For SC/ST beneficiaries, the central contribution is Rs 2.5 lakh, and the rest is borne by the beneficiary.
Khan further alleged that while the Slum Development Board was supposed to receive Rs 9,500 crore from the Centre — Rs 7,400 crore under various housing schemes and Rs 2,100 crore under the Rajiv Gandhi Awas Yojana — only Rs 310 crore was released in the last eight years.
"When I brought this to the Chief Minister's notice, the cabinet approved Rs 500 crore in 2024, enabling us to construct and allocate 36,789 houses," he said.
Khan clarified that Patil had not directly accused him of taking bribes.
"He never said I collected money. His grievance seems to be with the process at the local level," the minister said.
The controversy gave ammunition to the opposition BJP and JD(S), who demanded Khan's resignation and a high-level inquiry.
Adding to the Congress’s discomfort, party MLA Belur Gopal Krishna also joined the chorus demanding Khan’s resignation.
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Centre spent Rs 76.13 lakh on print media ads for RSS centenary, reveals RTI
New Delhi: The Union Ministry of Culture allegedly spent Rs 76.13 lakh on print advertisements marking the 100-year celebrations of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), according to a Right to Information (RTI) reply.
The information was sought by RTI activist Ajay Basudev Bose, who filed an application seeking details on expenditure incurred by the ministry for advertisements commemorating the RSS centenary.
Bose shared a picture of the reply from the ministry on his official ‘X’ handle.
“It is informed that an amount of Rs 76,13,129 has been spent on advertisement given in various print media by the Ministry of Culture on the occasion of the completion of 100 years of RSS,” the government’s reply stated.
RTI reply shows Min of Culture Govt of India spent a Whopping Rs 76L,13K,129 on Advertisement in Print Media on occasion of 100 yrs of #RSS
— AJAY Basudev Bose (@AjayBos93388306) April 16, 2026
When Everyone knows RSS is Not Registered & Does not Pay any Tax is it justified to spend Tax Payers Money on such Private event??@RSSorg… pic.twitter.com/dW4IUtdNCg
Bose questioned the expenditure in the post X, “when Everyone knows RSS is Not Registered & Does not Pay any Tax is it justified to spend Tax Payers Money on such Private event??”
Reacting to the development, Karnataka’s IT-BT and Panchayat Raj Minister Priyank Kharge also criticised the spending.
In a post on X, he asked why public money was being used for what he described as a “private ideological project.”
"Modi Sarkar spent Rs 76,13,129 of public money on newspaper advertisements to celebrate 100 years of the RSS. Why is Government spending taxpayers money on an unregistered, non-tax-paying organisation to celebrate their centenary?," he added.
Why is public money being used to serve a private ideological project?
— Priyank Kharge / ಪ್ರಿಯಾಂಕ್ ಖರ್ಗೆ (@PriyankKharge) April 16, 2026
Modi Sarkar spent ₹76,13,129 of public money on newspaper advertisements to celebrate 100 years of the RSS.
Why is Government spending taxpayers money on an unregistered, non-tax-paying organisation to… pic.twitter.com/EoZ6Pim3IM
According to reports, the RSS describes itself as a volunteer-based organisation and has stated that it functions as a body of individuals rather than a registered entity.
Founded by Keshav Baliram Hedgewar in 1925, the organisation is marking its centenary year beginning from Vijaydashami in 2025, with the milestone observed on October 2.
