Reports claim Siddaramaiah "gifted" Benz car, Congress denies
Bengaluru, Jan 20: Amid the political turbulence in Karnataka, former chief minister and senior Congress leader Siddaramaiah found himself in a fresh controversy after media reports emerged that he had been "gifted" a Mercedes-Benz car by his party legislator.
The car claimed to be worth over Rs 1.5 crore was allegedly "gifted" by Byrathi Suresh, an agriculturist-cum industrialist and a realtor who is one of the richest politicians in Karnataka.
Suresh had declared assets of Rs 416 crore in the affidavit filed by him for the 2017 May assembly polls.
Latching on to the reports, the state BJP questioned Siddaramaiah and accused him of having "made enough and more money" during his "10 per cent government".
The 10 per cent barb refers to alleged commission that the party claimed used to be paid during Siddaramaiah's chief ministership.
"Congress MLA Byrathi Suresh gifts Sri @siddaramaiah a Mercedes-Benz car worth 1.5 crore.Wears spectacle costing 2 Lakh. Wore 80 lakh worth hublot watch. Siddaramaiah vere looks like you have made enough & more money during your 10% govt, " the state BJP tweeted.
Refuting media reports, Congress leader and minister D K Shivakumar said Siddaramaiah has not been gifted the car by Suresh, but given for his traveling purposes.
"There is no gift or anything. We sometimes take our friends' vehicle to travel. There is no issue. Is there any record that he has received a gift or anything? Nothing, no record," he said.
In June 2018 also, Siddaramaiah was at the vortex of controversy after the then minister K J George allegedly gifted him Toyota Land Cruiser with fuel coupons for a year.
George, then, had deflected the charges by saying that he had lent the vehicle as Siddaramaiah was uncomfortable traveling long distances in his Innova car.
Earlier in February 2016, Siddaramaiah had been mired in controversy over a Rs 70 lakh worth diamond-studded Hublot watch gifted to him.
Siddaramaiah later handed over the watch to the then assembly Speaker Kagodu Thimmappa amid an uproar in the House, declaring it a state asset.
Both opposition BJP and JDS members had staged a dharna in the well of the House then.
Countering the allegations, Siddaramaiah had said the pre-owned "HUBLOT BIG BANG-301-M" wrist watch was presented to him by his Dubai-based NRI friend Dr Girish Chandra Varma in July last at Bengaluru as a personal gift.
Siddaramaiah also said Varma had no official dealings with Government of Karnataka or its organisations.
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CM Siddaramaiah urges Centre to increase LPG supply
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has urged the Centre to immediately intervene to address a severe shortage of commercial LPG in Bengaluru, saying the crisis is forcing restaurants and related establishments to shut down and impacting a wide cross-section of the public dependent on the hospitality sector.
In a letter written to Union Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Wednesday and shared with the media on Thursday, Siddaramaiah highlighted a sharp mismatch between demand and supply, noting that only a fraction of the required cylinders is being made available.
“As against the demand of 50,000 LPG cylinders from restaurants, hotels, catering establishments and PG accommodations etc., we are able to supply only 1,000 cylinders per day,” the Chief Minister said.
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He added that the shortage has led to a visible increase in shutting down of establishments due to unavailability of commercial LPG, affecting students, IT professionals, farmers, dairy producers and others reliant on the hospitality ecosystem.
Referring to recent directions from the Ministry prioritising domestic LPG supply, Siddaramaiah said the State has taken steps to regulate allocation for essential segments in line with the Centre’s guidelines, but the situation remains critical.
The CM also flagged the absence of an integrated monitoring system for commercial LPG distribution, in contrast to the existing IT system for domestic gas supply, leading to gaps in transparency and oversight.
He further pointed out that Auto LPG, a key fuel for autorickshaws that provide last-mile connectivity in Bengaluru, is also facing similar issues due to the lack of a monitoring mechanism.
Noting that India is expected to receive two LPG tankers soon, Siddaramaiah sought the Union Minister’s intervention to ensure adequate allocation to Karnataka, particularly Bengaluru, considering its operational needs and dependency patterns.
“I request your kind intervention to ensure adequate allocation and availability of commercial LPG and Auto LPG to Karnataka, keeping in view the operational requirements and unique dependency patterns of the State, especially city of Bengaluru,” he said.
