Bengaluru, April 21 (IANS) Bengaluru BJP MLAs led by the former Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister and BJP MLA C.N. Ashwath Narayan have filed a complaint against State Energy Minister K.J. George and others with the Karnataka Lokayukta here on Monday in connection with alleged smart meter scam.
Yelahanka MLA S.R. Vishwanath and Doddaballapur MLA Dheeraj Muniraju are also the complainants in the case.
Speaking to the media after filing a complaint with the Lokayukta, former Deputy CM Ashwath Narayan said that complaints have been filed against Energy Minister George, Chief Secretary Gaurav Gupta, BESCOM MD Mahantesh, Technical Directors Ramesh and Balaji, and others.
He accused them of violating all legal norms to award a contract to M/s Rajashree Electricals Private Limited, the company which is merely a plumbing equipment manufacturer.
“There is no legal provision to make smart meters compulsory for consumers. Yet they have been forced. Not just that — they’ve entered into an agreement with a blacklisted company,” Ashwath Narayan alleged.
“Several allegations of irregularities in the smart meter project have been brought to the attention of the Lokayukta.”
“We have provided detailed information to the Lokayukta regarding the corruption involved. We have directly submitted the complaint to the Superintendent of Police of the Lokayukta and requested appropriate action leading to a logical conclusion. This complaint has been filed to curb corruption. The battle has begun,” he said.
He alleged that Energy Minister George has made nine false claims.
“We had already exposed this. There has been misuse, and despite no legal provision to make smart meters mandatory for consumers, they are being forced,” he said in response to a question.
The complaint says, “The Board of directors, Bengaluru Electricity Supply Company (BESCOM), the Chairman of BESCOM, Minister George along with Additional Chief Secretary KPTCL Gaurav Gupta, former BESCOM MD Mahantesh Bilagi and officials of BESCOM Board, have illegally conspired in preparation of smart meter tender, published on September 26, 2024.”
“The smart meter tender published by BESCOM is in violation of Karnataka Transparency in Public Procurement (KTPP) Act, the Central Electricity Authority (CEA) guidelines, Karnataka Electricity Regulatory Commission (KERC) regulations, the Revamped Distribution Sector Scheme (RDSS) standard bidding documents guidelines, and also, in violation of various government orders issues by Finance department.”
The Board of directors of BESCOM, in the process of notifying the smart meter tender have dishonestly misappropriated the powers vested with them, with the intention to ensure that the tender is tailor made to ensure M/s Rajashree Electricals Private Ltd would successfully secure the tender, the complaint said.
“I have been informed that Rajashree Electricals is a benami company being operated by agents or henchmen of Energy Minister K.J. George. However, there is a need to find out the nexus between the Rajashree Electricals and Minister George,” Ashwath Narayan demanded.
MLA S.R. Vishwanath, BJP Yuva Morcha State President and MLA Dheeraj Muniraju, Bengaluru South District President and MLA C.K. Ramamurthy, Bengaluru North District President S. Harish, and Bengaluru Central District President Saptagiri Gowda were also present.
–IANS
mka/khz
Disclaimer
The information contained in this website is for general information purposes only. The information is provided by BhaskarLive.in and while we endeavour to keep the information up to date and correct, we make no representations or warranties of any kind, express or implied, about the completeness, accuracy, reliability, suitability or availability with respect to the website or the information, products, services, or related graphics contained on the website for any purpose. Any reliance you place on such information is therefore strictly at your own risk.
In no event will we be liable for any loss or damage including without limitation, indirect or consequential loss or damage, or any loss or damage whatsoever arising from loss of data or profits arising out of, or in connection with, the use of this website.
Through this website you are able to link to other websites which are not under the control of BhaskarLive.in We have no control over the nature, content and availability of those sites. The inclusion of any links does not necessarily imply a recommendation or endorse the views expressed within them.
Every effort is made to keep the website up and running smoothly. However, BhaskarLive.in takes no responsibility for, and will not be liable for, the website being temporarily unavailable due to technical issues beyond our control.
For any legal details or query please visit original source link given with news or click on Go to Source.
Our translation service aims to offer the most accurate translation possible and we rarely experience any issues with news post. However, as the translation is carried out by third part tool there is a possibility for error to cause the occasional inaccuracy. We therefore require you to accept this disclaimer before confirming any translation news with us.
If you are not willing to accept this disclaimer then we recommend reading news post in its original language.
