K'taka Contractors' association welcomes clearing of Rs 600 cr worth pending bills
Bengaluru: The Karnataka State Contractors' Association on Tuesday welcomed the clearing of Rs 600 crore worth of pending bills of 1,054 small contractors in the Public Works Department.
The association president D Kempanna, however, reiterated his stand that the ''package system'' -- dividing contracts into different sections and allotting them to various contractors -- was leading to corruption.
''All the pending bills of 1,054 contractors have been cleared,'' Kempanna told a press conference.
He said the association has appealed to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and his deputy D K Shivakumar to clear the pending bills in various government departments including the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), the city civic body.
''Our struggle is continuing against the package system. We are exploring the legal options regarding the pending bills in the police housing corporation,'' Kempanna said.
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The octogenarian said: ''We demand that the package system should be abolished. This is leading to corruption.'' Kempanna alleged last week that the practice of 40 per cent kickbacks on government contracts continues even under the Congress regime.
Accusing officials in the state government of rampant corruption, he said, earlier (during the previous BJP regime) public representatives were demanding bribes, now it's their turn.
''Corruption is on in Karnataka by the officials. Till now, no MLA, MP or Minister has asked us for money. Earlier MLAs used to ask for a specified amount to give us a contract for work, that is not the situation now. Now the officials come and ask -- give money, if you want work,'' Kempanna said.
The association under the leadership of Kempanna earlier alleged ''harassment'' by ministers, elected representatives and others during the previous BJP regime, accusing them of demanding 40 per cent commission for awarding contracts and clearing bills, and had even written a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi in this regard.
During the 2023 assembly polls, the Congress made the association's charge a major campaign issue to dub the BJP as being ''corrupt''.
The ''package system'' is being followed to take up projects in all departments, Kempanna said.
''This is being done with the intention to keep away local contractors and favour contractors from neighboring states. Due to the package system, local, small-medium contractors of the state are facing problems as they are not getting the work,'' he said.
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Main accused in Delhi Police constable murder shot dead in Sangam Vihar
New Delhi (PTI): A day after the fatal stabbing of a Delhi Police constable, the main accused in the case was shot dead in an encounter with the personnel of the force in south Delhi's Sangam Vihar area, officials said on Sunday.
Constable Kiran Pal was stabbed to death by three people on Saturday while on night patrolling duty in southeast Delhi's Govindpuri area. Two accused -- Deepak Max and Krish Gupta -- were arrested later in that day.
The third accused, Raghav -- who stabbed Pal with a knife -- was hiding in Sangam Vihar, a senior police officer of Special Cell said.
Acting on specific information, teams of NDR of Special Cell and Narcotics Cell of South East District, went to the area connecting Sangam Vihar and Surajkund Road late on Saturday night, the officer said.
The accused was identified and asked to surrender. He, however, opened fire at the police personnel who retaliated in self-defence and injured the accused.
"He was immediately taken to the ESIC Hospital, Okhla, where he died," the officer said.
A pistol with two cartridges have been seized, the police officer said, adding no police official was injured in the encounter.
Constable Kiran Pal, posted at Govindpuri Police Station, was on night patrolling duty when he stopped three people riding a scooty in the early hours of Saturday.
The accused threw stones at the constable to evade arrest but he managed to waylay them by putting his bike in front of their vehicle, the officer said.
The constable also took away the keys of the scooty and started questioning the trio during which the accused stabbed him, the officer added.
