Source : INDIA TODAY NEWS
Karnataka minister B Nagendra broke down on Friday evening as he announced his resignation from DK Shivakumar’s Cabinet, within 25 days of assuming office, amid mounting pressure from the BJP over corruption allegations.
This is the second time Nagendra has stepped down from the state Cabinet over the controversy, having resigned from the Siddaramaiah government in June 2024 following allegations of unauthorised diversion of funds from the Valmiki Corporation.
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Nagendra returned to the Cabinet in the first week of August after Shivakumar replaced Siddaramaiah as Karnataka Chief Minister. “Today, I am voluntarily tendering my resignation as minister,” an emotional Nagendra told reporters, claiming that he was being targeted because he is a Dalit.
“Manuwadis (apparently referring to the BJP) targeted me as they didn’t want a tribal person in the country to grow,” Nagendra alleged.
“Is my signature anywhere in the Valmiki transaction? I am being targeted as a Dalit,” Nagendra said, questioning why he was being held responsible when banks were involved in the alleged transactions and asking, “Union Finance Minister is responsible then?”
With tears in his eyes, Nagendra added, “People of Karnataka are watching. A thousand lies have been told against me every day.” Nagendra’s announcement comes amid renewed demands from the BJP and JD(S) for his resignation.
The Opposition has accused him of being linked to the alleged diversion of funds from the Maharshi Valmiki Scheduled Tribes Development Corporation and has staged protests inside and outside the Karnataka legislature.
The BJP and JD(S) have also announced a foot march from Raichur to Ballari from September 1 to 10, demanding Nagendra’s removal from the Cabinet.
The controversy erupted in May 2024 after P Chandrasekharan, then an accounts superintendent with the Maharshi Valmiki Scheduled Tribes Development Corporation, died by suicide and left behind a six-page note alleging irregularities and unauthorised transfers of corporation funds.
Subsequent investigations found that Rs 89.63 crore was transferred from a corporation account to a Union Bank of India account and subsequently moved to multiple other accounts, triggering a major political controversy.
Nagendra was the Tribal Welfare Minister when the controversy surfaced and resigned from the Cabinet in June 2024. He was re-inducted on August 3, 2026, with the Planning and Statistics portfolio, prompting the Opposition to renew its demand for his removal.
Nagendra has previously rejected reports that he would resign and maintained that the allegations against him were politically motivated. He also said he needed to prepare to take on “Manuvadis”, an apparent reference to the BJP.
Earlier this week, on August 24, responding to a BJP protest demanding Nagendra’s resignation, Karnataka Minister Priyank Kharge questioned the basis of the Opposition’s allegations against the Congress leader.
“Has he been convicted? Is his name in a CID or SIT case? Everyone knows how his name appeared in the CBI’s second charge sheet,” Kharge told reporters.
– Ends
SOURCE :- TIMES OF INDIA
