‘Nagendra innocent, confident of his leadership’: Shivakumar on Tribal Welfare scam row

Bengaluru, Aug 26 (IANS) Karnataka Chief Minister D. K. Shivakumar on Wednesday dismissed speculation that Planning and Statistics Minister B. Nagendra, accused in the tribal welfare scam, was considering resignation.

Speaking to the media in Bengaluru, Shivakumar said Nagendra had never backed down on party matters.

“He is a disciplined soldier of the party. He is innocent. Nevertheless, we had accepted his resignation earlier. We have immense confidence in his leadership,” he stated.

On the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, Shivakumar claimed that more than one crore names had been removed.

He said the government was issuing permanent resident and caste certificates and had requested election authorities to hold booth‑level meetings and publish updated rolls.

“MLAs have been instructed to create awareness among people about the power of their vote and their right to vote. Eligible voters should not be deprived of their rights,” he added.

Shivakumar said panchayat and municipal elections would be held by November and the government would write to the State Election Commission to conduct them immediately after the SIR process was completed.

The Chief Minister also announced that the government had decided to distribute 50,000 residential sites to low-income families in each district. The Revenue Department has identified land, and MLAs have been instructed to collect comprehensive details about beneficiaries.

“Bogus bills and irregularities in development works should not be allowed,” he cautioned.

Responding to Opposition criticism over proposed legislation concerning the use of park land, Shivakumar said such land could be used legally for public‑purpose development works, including road widening.

“We will not allow it to be given to private individuals,” he said, accusing previous governments of allotting land to their parties and supporters.

–IANS

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